# Lessons from a Recovering Hardware Founder | Bluesmart, ROOM, Kite Compliance | Brian Chen

- Show: [TRADEOFFS](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs)
- Published: 2026-06-09
- Length: 59m
- Episode: 14
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian
- Listen: https://tradeoffs.fm/14

## Summary

Brian Chen, founder of Kite Compliance, recounts his journey from co-founding Bluesmart, the smart-luggage startup that raised $2.2M on Indiegogo before airlines banned non-removable batteries, to scaling ROOM, a modular office furniture company that reached $60M in annual revenue before being sold to OFS. He explains how Bluesmart's decision to embed lithium-ion batteries for IoT purity led to regulatory backlash, while ROOM succeeded by focusing on direct-to-consumer pricing and supply chain agility. Today, Chen uses his experience to build Kite Compliance, an AI-powered platform designed to help hardware companies navigate complex certification and regulatory hurdles.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=0) Introduction: Brian Chen and Kite Compliance
- [1:32](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=92) Early Career: Endeavor and Hall Capital Partners
- [4:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=240) Bluesmart: Y Combinator, Indiegogo, and Moving to Hong Kong
- [17:25](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=1045) The Battery Decision and Airline Bans at Bluesmart
- [20:38](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=1238) Founding ROOM: Modular Phone Booths and Product-Market Fit
- [27:55](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=1675) ROOM's Series A, Pandemic Impact, and Sale to OFS
- [36:39](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=2199) Kite Compliance: Using AI for Product Certification
- [44:34](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=2674) Compliance Pitfalls: Medical Devices and UL Certification
- [56:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/tradeoffs/2026-06-09-lessons-from-a-recovering-hardware-founder-bluesmart-room-kite-compliance-brian#t=3401) Advice: Generational Thinking and Fundraising Emotions

## Topics

- [Crowdfunding & preorders](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/crowdfunding)
- [Certification & compliance](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/certification-and-compliance)
- [Batteries & low-power design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/batteries-and-low-power)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)
- [Fundraising & investors](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/fundraising)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies, companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Bluesmart (product)
- ROOM (product)
- Kite Compliance (company)
- OFS (company)
- Y Combinator (company)
- Indiegogo (other)
- MIT Sloan (other)
- Apple (company)
- Tesla (company)
- WeWork (company)
- Endeavor (company)
- Hall Capital Partners (company)
- Magic Patterns (company)
- LIFX (company)
- Owlette (company)
- UL (other)
- FDA (other)
- TSMC (company)
- MercadoLibre (company)
- Canary (company)
- Casper (company)
- Fitbit (company)
- GoPro (company)
- Nest (company)
- Amazon AWS (company)
- Informal (company)
- Climate Tech (other)
- Ruma (company)
- Hallman and Friedman (company)
- Fairlawn Capital (company)
- Reid Hoffman (other)
- Katie Hall (other)
- Morris Chang (other)
- Alfred Sloan (other)
- General Motors (company)
- Michael Klein (other)
- Tony Hsu (other)
- DoorDash (company)
- Alex Michael (other)
- Tanya Shica (other)
- Nate Padgett (other)
- Chris Rill (other)
- Brian Chen (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [Hardware Startup Horror Stories and How to Avoid Them with Dave Millman of BizDev.Global](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/predictable-designs-podcast/2020-03-23-hardware-startup-horror-stories-and-how-to-avoid-them-with-dave-millman-of-bizde) (Predictable Designs Podcast)
- [Mergers and People Acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-09-05-mergers-and-people-acquisitions) (The Amp Hour)
- [The EEVblog Sparkgap Generator](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2017-11-20-the-eevblog-sparkgap-generator) (The Amp Hour)
- [An Interview with Colin Karpfinger - Blendling Bean Brio](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-amp-hour/2014-12-04-an-interview-with-colin-karpfinger-blendling-bean-brio) (The Amp Hour)
- [When our phones are just phones with Kai Tang and Joe Hollier of Light](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-08-10-when-our-phones-are-just-phones-with-kai-tang-and-joe-hollier-of-light) (How I Built This)

## Citing this page

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