Founders Update #34
Michael here! The past two weeks have been special. For the first time in a long time, we brought the whole Bía team together—in person—for a two-week hack-a-thon in Vancouver.
Michael Byrne April 11, 2025 2 min read
We’re a remote team by design, but when new hardware lands, we shift into high gear. Getting everyone in the same room means faster debugging, sharper ideas, and real-time breakthroughs.
There are now 10 of us as full-time employees building Bía (plus dozens of contractors), with the majority in our science and engineering department.
Next week, Andrew is visiting our manufacturing partners to keep Beta moving.... and back here, we’re dialing in the details.
Travel Case Results ✈️
The results are in... Travel Case #2 is the winner!
Huge thanks to everyone who weighed in. If you haven’t had a chance yet, there’s still time to share your thoughts — the survey’s still open, and we’d love to hear from you.
The travel pillow concept got a lot of love, but only if it packs down small enough to fit in a backpack or carry-on. We hear you loud and clear. We'll have more to share with you in the next couple of weeks.
Tariffs Planning 🚚
News about tariffs are everywhere.
The good news? We’ve got flexibility. We’re already working with manufacturers from a diverse set of countries, including a few in North America, to take on final assembly. This lets us stay nimble and make smart decisions as we move onto mass production.
So if you’re worried about how tariffs will impacts your order, know that we’re on it and that we’re planning ahead.
Bía is made up of over 300 unique components, and many of them are only manufactured in high-tariff countries. This wouldn't solve the tariff issue - it just shifts where it shows up.
Originally, we contracted with 3 local manufacturers across the USA and Canada to build Bía. Two of them couldn't figure out the tooling, the other sent the contract to an overseas manufacturer without telling us. We've been searching for options, we're open to them, but it hasn't worked out for us.
We're waiting for the final count from our manufacturer; expect a notification by the end of April.
If you're part of Beta, please search your email from us with the subject line "Confirm Shipping Address" and follow the instructions. If you didn't receive the email and you're part of the Beta program, please let us know.
We've taken all your feedback and put it all together on our website as a dedicated FAQ.
