Hardware Podcasts

China, Entrepreneurs and Blue Collar Reality

The Amp Hour · 27 Oct 2010 · 1h 04m · Episode 14

What this episode covers

Dave Jones and Chris Gammell discuss the distinction between open source software and open hardware, noting that the Open Hardware Summit uses the latter term despite its website branding. They analyze the high barriers to custom ASIC manufacturing, citing MOSIS services and the necessity of specialized EDA tools like Cadence, contrasting this with the relative ease of PCB fabrication. The hosts also critique invention brokers who exploit inventors, using the EcoSwitch as a cautionary tale of wasted time and money, while advocating for rapid, imperfect market entry. Finally, they address the geopolitical tensions surrounding rare earth elements, arguing that China's dominance is based on economic processing infrastructure rather than geological scarcity, and emphasize the importance of blue-collar skilled trades and education in maintaining competitive advantage.

Most relevant to

makers and hobbyists

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Farnell, Element14, Mentor Graphics
Products
EcoSwitch, TV B Gone
Tools
JITA, Cadence
Also
EEV blog, Chris Gammell's Analog Life, Open Hardware Summit, MOSIS, Mitch Altman

Related episodes from other shows

Other shows on the same ground, closest first.

  • Embedded.fm · 1h 17m

    140: Physics Is the Same Everywhere

    Andrew 'Bunnie' Huang, creator of the Novena open source laptop and author of Hacking the Xbox, discusses his new book, The Essential Guide to Electronics in Shenzhen, which he funded via Crowd Supply. He explains the cultural and economic differences between prototyping in China versus the US, noting that Chinese factories use manual assembly with higher defect rates but lower upfront costs. Huang also reflects on the value of open hardware for privacy, the challenges of self-publishing physical books with unique features, and his desire to use his engineering skills to help society.

    Crowdfunding & preordersManufacturing partners & offshoring
    8 chapters

  • Unnamed Reverse Engineering Podcast · 1h 43m

    044 - Scots Army Knife

    Piotr Esden-Tempski of 1BitSquared discusses the company's role in manufacturing open-source hardware, specifically the Glasgow digital interface explorer, the iCEBreaker FPGA board, and the Black Magic Probe debugger. He explains the economic rationale for using an old Quad 4C pick-and-place machine for small-batch production and details how Glasgow uses an FPGA to dynamically generate hardware protocols via the nmigen HDL. The conversation also covers the geopolitical shift toward RISC-V in China, the challenges of debugging legacy industrial equipment, and the importance of documentation and community education in the open-source hardware ecosystem.

    Manufacturing partners & offshoringEmbedded firmware
    8 chapters

  • The Builder Circle · 1h 06m

    S3 E6: Building Innovation Moats with Open Hardware with Andrew "Bunnie" Huang

    Andrew "Bunnie" Huang, a hardware hacker and author of *Hacking the Xbox* and *The Hardware Hacker*, explains how open hardware creates structural innovation moats through community engagement rather than secrecy. He contrasts the Chinese Gomban ecosystem with Western models, citing his startup Chibitronics and products like Arduino and Raspberry Pi as examples where openness accelerates adoption and brand loyalty. Huang also details a manufacturing failure involving swapped microphone wires due to poor documentation and advises against using AI-generated code in critical embedded systems without rigorous review.

    Intellectual propertyDesign for manufacturing & NPI
    7 chapters

  • EMS@C-LEVEL · 20m

    EMS & The Economist: Geopolitical Factors Shaping the Manufacturing Sector

    IPC Chief Economist Shawn DuBravac joins host Philip Stoten to analyze North American manufacturing data, highlighting weak book-to-bill ratios for PCB and EMS sectors. They discuss how Federal Reserve interest rate cuts may spur capital investment, while examining delays at major semiconductor facilities like TSMC, Intel, and Samsung. The conversation covers the geopolitical complexities of rare earth materials, China's EV dominance via BYD, and the impact of US election policies on supply chain resilience.

    Sourcing & supply chainPolicy, trade & tariffs
    7 chapters

  • EE Times Current · 15m

    Silicon 100: Startups Worth Watching in 2023

    Peter Clark, curator of EE Times' Silicon 100, analyzes the 2023 list with Embedded.com editor Nitin Dahad, highlighting a surge in AI startups, significant Chinese activity, and a shift toward full-stack offerings. They discuss the transition from data center AI to edge applications, the persistent semiconductor talent shortage, and the geopolitical challenges facing Chinese chipmakers like Byton Technology who are denied access to leading-edge foundries like TSMC. The conversation also covers the rise of custom silicon, the maturity of quantum computing, and the broadening wavefront of startup activity across power semiconductors and displays.

    Chips, FPGAs & semiconductorsAI & machine learning
    5 chapters

The summary, chapters and topics are generated from the episode’s audio by this directory, not written by The Amp Hour. The episode itself belongs to its publisher.