Annette has had a whirlwind of the last few years, going from problem to prototype, from patents to paying customers, bootstrapping the whole way with Tekuma. Their technology allows users to intuitively control any device (drones, robots) with one hand freeing your other hand up to focus on peripherals or control other devices.
How did your startup/business journey begin?
I was working full-time for a mental health charity while studying my MBA in 2016. My uni offered a free extra-curricular design-thinking entrepreneurial program so I took it up early on in the year, rearranging my subjects so I could accommodate it around work. I was looking for something to get excited about and my (now) cofounder explained he had been looking to commercialise technology he had adapted and tested during his mechatronics engineering honours thesis he had completed in 2015. He demonstrated the technology to me, and I saw the potential for its application across multiple industries. We decided to apply together to UTS:Hatchery+, an accelerator program at my uni, explaining our complimentary skills with Michael being the engineer and I being a Communications grad and MBA student. The last 4 years running Tekuma have been a whirlwind, we’ve gone from problem to prototype, from patents to paying customers, bootstrapping the whole way.
What are you working on at the moment?
We completed our first paid trial with underwater rover customer, UnderseaROV. They have been using trial units out in the field for over a year now. We recently collaborated with them to build their own exclusive controller utilising our technology and in October they started selling them to their own clients.
We’ve also been pursuing the accessibility industry at the moment due to an increased interest in this sector and have found appropriate use cases for people with limited mobility such as multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy to operate devices with our controller.
What are you most looking forward to as part of CORE Sprint?
Digging deep into the mining and energy sector, we’re keen to see what partners we might establish there and what new applications we can see our technology making an impact on training, safety, and ease of use.
Can you share with us one of your favourite success stories from your business journey so far?
At the Powerhouse Museum STEAM Demo Day 2016 during the Spark Festival a student rolled up in a wheelchair, right arm & hand in a brace and was watching the other students fly a mini-Parrot drone with our technology. I offered he try it out, he protested, telling us he wouldn’t be able to do it but I put our proof of concept in his left hand and he flew a drone for the first time. The absolute glee on his face as he manoeuvred the drone smoothly and easily in all directions really drove the point home to me how much of a positive impact our control technology can make and is one of the primary reasons we have the determination to keep working towards ease of control being the norm for everyone.
Two years later, at the same event, we again had hundreds of students trying out our controller, a 3D-printed prototype this time rather than a proof of concept. UnderseaROV was on the table next to us and they asked “Can we use your thing to control our thing?” our response “it should work”, we plugged it in and within fifteen seconds we were piloting an underwater rover for the first time. All the hard work Michael had been doing to ensure our controller was device agnostic and universally compatible proved its worth in that moment and they became our first paying partners and later first repeat customer. They’ve been using our technology for over a year now and collaborated with us to make an exclusive controller for underwater rovers utilising our technology which has recently started trials in the field this month (Oct 2020).
How have you adapted post COVID-19?
Our day to day focus has shifted. Pre-Covid we were doing a lot of travel, tradeshows, networking events, and demonstrations. Now I’m digging online for the best programs (like this one) that can help Tekuma succeed when we can’t put our technology directly in people’s hands.
What is one interesting thing about you? (A hobby, something you love, something curious that no one would expect!)
I have a second dan black belt in Taekwondo. I’ve been involved in martial arts for over fifteen years. I feel the tenets of taekwondo have really grounded me while I ride the rollercoaster that is startup life.
Are you interested in learning more about Annette and Tekuma? We have our Virtual Pitch Night on November 10th. All welcome, register here.