# Kickstarter, Open Source RC & Modelsource - Facinorous Financial Foulness

- Show: [The Amp Hour](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour)
- Published: 2012-10-22
- Length: 1h 10m
- Episode: 118
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-10-22-kickstarter-open-source-rc-modelsource-facinorous-financial-foulness
- Listen: https://theamphour.com/the-amp-hour-118-facinorous-financial-foulness/

## Summary

Chris Gammell and Dave Jones discuss the financial risks of crowdfunding, citing the failure of an open-source RC project due to insufficient funding and feature creep. They analyze the collapse of battery manufacturer A123 Systems and the recent ousting of Altium founder Nick Martin, debating the conflict between technical founders and shareholder-focused boards. The conversation extends to industry trends, including rumors of Amazon acquiring Texas Instruments' OMAP division and the viability of third-party footprint libraries like Modelsource.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-10-22-kickstarter-open-source-rc-modelsource-facinorous-financial-foulness#t=0) Introduction and Monday Morning Banter
- [3:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-10-22-kickstarter-open-source-rc-modelsource-facinorous-financial-foulness#t=186) Kickstarter Risks and the Open Source RC Failure
- [9:15](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-10-22-kickstarter-open-source-rc-modelsource-facinorous-financial-foulness#t=555) A123 Systems Collapse and Battery Industry Economics
- [15:22](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-10-22-kickstarter-open-source-rc-modelsource-facinorous-financial-foulness#t=922) Altium Founder Nick Martin Ousted by Board
- [26:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-10-22-kickstarter-open-source-rc-modelsource-facinorous-financial-foulness#t=1566) STMicro Breakup and Founder vs. CEO Dynamics
- [41:23](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-10-22-kickstarter-open-source-rc-modelsource-facinorous-financial-foulness#t=2483) EDA Tools: Modelsource, DesignSpark, and Footprint Libraries
- [59:28](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2012-10-22-kickstarter-open-source-rc-modelsource-facinorous-financial-foulness#t=3568) Amazon/OMAP Rumors and BGA Routing Challenges

## Topics

- [Crowdfunding & preorders](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/crowdfunding)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [PCB design & layout](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pcb-design)
- [Chips, FPGAs & semiconductors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/chips-and-fpgas)

## Most relevant to

large enterprises

## Mentioned

- Altium (company)
- A123 Systems (company)
- Johnson Controls (company)
- STMicro (company)
- Modelsource (product)
- DesignSpark (product)
- OMAP (chip)
- Texas Instruments (company)
- Amazon (company)
- Freescale (company)
- Linear Technology (company)
- Futaba (product)
- Turnagy (product)
- SparkFun (company)
- Solyndra (company)
- KiCad (tool)
- Eagle (tool)
- Xilinx (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [The Spark Gap - Episode 43](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-spark-gap/2015-11-11-the-spark-gap-episode-43) (The Spark Gap)
- [93 Rejections, One Revolution: How Indiegogo Changed Crowdfunding Forever](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-12-15-93-rejections-one-revolution-how-indiegogo-changed-crowdfunding-forever) (How I Built This)
- [470: Upping the Chaos Level](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2024-02-09-470-upping-the-chaos-level) (Embedded.fm)
- [13 Reasons Why New Hardware Products Fail](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/predictable-designs-podcast/2022-11-23-13-reasons-why-new-hardware-products-fail) (Predictable Designs Podcast)
- [Open Source Governance](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/oxide-and-friends/2023-05-30-open-source-governance) (Oxide and Friends)

## Citing this page

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