# #010: From Pebble to Intel: can hardware startups beat the big players?

- Show: [Coredump Sessions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions)
- Published: 2025-06-11
- Length: 59m
- Episode: 11
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players
- Listen: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/memfault/episodes/010-From-Pebble-to-Intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players-e343q5f

## Summary

Kean Wong, former VP of Software at Pebble and current CTO at Igor, discusses scaling hardware startups against big tech, emphasizing that startups can outpace giants by staying nimble and hiring from developer communities. He details Pebble's strategy of using hackathons and community engagement to recruit talent, maintaining a 6-week release cadence to drive evangelism, and investing 10-20% of engineering effort into infrastructure and automated testing. Wong also explains how he applies these lessons at his current company, Igor, by leveraging AI tools for software development while recognizing their limitations in complex firmware and embedded systems.

## Chapters

- [0:01](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players#t=1) Introduction: Kean Wong, Pebble, and Igor
- [6:34](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players#t=394) Pebble's Developer-First Culture and Hackathon Hiring
- [11:40](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players#t=700) Scaling Engineering Teams and Embracing Change
- [18:26](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players#t=1106) Structured Hiring Processes and Risk Assessment
- [29:46](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players#t=1786) Firmware Organization and Infrastructure Investment
- [36:40](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players#t=2200) AI in Software Development and Firmware Limitations
- [43:29](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players#t=2609) Innovation at Intel and Building Igor
- [55:14](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players#t=3314) Q&A: Hiring for Passion and Soft Skills

## Topics

- [Hiring & workforce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/hiring-and-workforce)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [AI & machine learning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/ai-and-machine-learning)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Embedded firmware](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/embedded-firmware)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies, companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Pebble (product)
- Igor (company)
- Intel (company)
- Facebook (company)
- Palm (company)
- Memfault (company)
- Cursor (tool)
- Claude (tool)
- SwiftUI (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [157: How Hardware Startups Compete with Big Business](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-01-05-157-how-hardware-startups-compete-with-big-business) (Product Startup)
- [219: Hiring Your First Team Members at a Hardware Startup](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2024-03-28-219-hiring-your-first-team-members-at-a-hardware-startup) (Product Startup)
- [185: Building a Successful Hardware Startup Multiple Times](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-07-21-185-building-a-successful-hardware-startup-multiple-times) (Product Startup)
- [152: Three Main Problems When Scaling a Hardware Startup](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2022-12-01-152-three-main-problems-when-scaling-a-hardware-startup) (Product Startup)
- [Agile at Growing Hardware Startups with Matt Cole](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-pragmatic-embedded-podcast/2022-04-19-agile-at-growing-hardware-startups-with-matt-cole) (The Pragmatic Embedded Podcast)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/coredump-sessions/2025-06-11-010-from-pebble-to-intel-can-hardware-startups-beat-the-big-players. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to Coredump Sessions.