What to Think About Before Launching A Hardware Startup

So, you want to start a hardware company? Fantastic. Welcome to the most brutal, cash-hungry, patience-testing, logistics-nightmare industry you could have chosen. But also, if you get it right, one of the most rewarding. There's something uniquely satisfying about holding a physical product you built and seeing customers use it in the real world.

by

Matthew Haber

March 17, 2025
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Before you recklessly catapult yourself into this adventure, let’s talk about what you should be considering right now, before you even think about pressing “Launch” on that Kickstarter page.

Make Sure You're Solving a Problem People Actually Care About

Hardware startup considerations

It doesn’t matter how technically impressive your product is if no one needs it. Too many hardware startups fall in love with their own engineering and forget to validate demand. Juicero collapsed spectacularly after raising about $120 million in VC for a Wi-Fi connected cold-press juicing machine. The core issue was misjudging market need – at $400, the juicer was an over-engineered gadget that didn’t truly solve a problem worth paying for.

Here's your first test: if you can't find someone willing to put down money today for an ugly, hacked-together prototype, your market might not be as real as you think.

Ways to test demand before you build:

  • Try to sell pre-orders—not to your mom, but to actual strangers. Just don’t over promise - Lily Robotics accepted 60,000 pre-orders then collapsed when they couldn’t execute. 
  • Run ads with fake "buy now" buttons to measure click interest.
  • Find Reddit forums, Discords, or LinkedIn groups where potential users hang out and ask them, “Would you buy this? If not, why?”

If your only feedback is a bunch of polite head nods and, “Yeah, that’s cool,” that’s bad. People should either be reaching for their wallets or aggressively explaining why your product won't work—both indicate strong opinions, which means there's something worth chasing.

Build an MVP That You Can Actually Deliver

Software startups can pivot in a weekend. You? You have supply chains, lead times, and manufacturing constraints. That means your minimum viable product (MVP) better be viable—not just in terms of function, but in terms of how you’ll actually make it at scale.

Smart founders:

  • Use off-the-shelf components (Raspberry Pi, Arduino, etc.) whenever possible.
  • Avoid custom parts until they absolutely need them.
  • Hack together an early version that’s ugly but works—then sell that version to your first users before perfecting anything.

Your v1.0 should be something you can manufacture in small batches, improve based on real feedback, and then iterate towards perfection. Trying to get it right the first time is a recipe for bankruptcy.

Understand How You’ll Fund This (It’s Expensive)

Hardware is a cash vampire. It will suck your bank account dry faster than you think. Even the “cheap” way of doing things—bootstrapping, 3D printing, and small batch runs—adds up fast. A simple hardware device (e.g. a basic consumer gadget) often costs on the order of $100,000 to $500,000 to develop, usually over 6–9 months of design and engineering work​.

Here are your options for financing:

  • Preorders & bootstrapping: If you can self-fund and grow via revenue, do it.
  • Crowdfunding: Kickstarter or Indiegogo can be great, but they can also be a full-time marketing job and won’t save you if you underestimate costs.
  • VC funding: Investors hate hardware unless you show traction. Get paying customers first.
  • Grants & accelerators: Programs like HAX or Y Combinator can help, but don’t rely on them.

Reality check: If you don't have a clear plan for how to get to at least your first 100 paying customers without running out of money, you’re not ready yet.

Start Thinking About Manufacturing and Supply Chain Early

You don’t need a factory on day one, but you do need a plan for how this thing will get made at scale. Every delay in manufacturing means a delay in revenue, and a six-month delay in hardware can kill your company.

Things to do early:

  • Find multiple suppliers for critical components (because shortages happen).
  • Scrub your BOM to make sure those part numbers are real, and no obsoletes.
  • Understand your Bill of Materials (BOM) and track costs carefully.
  • MVP is not Production, startups too frequently overpromise on timelines and unit cost; initial manufacturing runs invariably take longer and cost more per unit than a mature production line.​

The worst time to realize your cost structure is broken is after you’ve taken thousands of preorders at a price that guarantees you’ll lose money.

Don’t Overdesign – Function > Form (For Now)

Hardware startup design

Your first customers will forgive clunky design if the product solves their problem. They will not forgive you for being late because you wasted six months perfecting an enclosure that doesn’t matter yet.

  • Ugly but working beats beautiful but delayed.
  • Don’t fall into the “Apple-level industrial design” trap—you’re not Apple.
  • Test form factors with 3D prints instead of committing to expensive injection molds too early.

You can always refine aesthetics later. Your goal now is to get a functional product into people’s hands ASAP.

Expect Everything to Take Twice as Long and Cost Twice as Much

Every startup underestimates how long things take. In hardware, this can be fatal. Manufacturing delays, regulatory approvals, and unexpected component shortages will happen. The only question is whether or not you planned for them.

  • If you think you’ll launch in six months, assume 12.
  • If your BOM suggests a unit cost of $20, assume $40.
  • If you have a cash runway of one year, assume six months.

Survive long enough to fix problems, and you’ll be ahead of 90% of failed hardware startups.

Talk to Customers 

Your early adopters will shape your success. Ignore them at your own risk. Hardware startups that fail usually:

  • Wait too long before testing their product in the wild.
  • Assume they “know what customers want” without asking.
  • Only talk to users after launching, instead of before and during development.

Engage directly. Find beta testers. Build a community around your product. The best founders treat their early customers like co-creators, not just buyers.

Find What Makes You Defensible

Unless your hardware has a real moat, expect copycats. Someone in China will make a cheaper version of your product. The only question is how fast.

Ways to defend yourself:

  • Software & ecosystem lock-in – Hardware that ties into a unique software experience is harder to clone.
  • Brand & community – A loyal customer base will prefer you over knockoffs.
  • Fast iteration & customer obsession – Outrun competitors by always improving.

Patents? Maybe. But honestly, they won’t save you if you aren’t also out-executing the copycats.

Ready To Launch? Think Marathon, Not Sprint

Hardware startups aren’t weekend projects. You’re committing to a long, expensive, and often frustrating journey. But if you do it right, you’ll build something real—something people can hold, use, and love.

So before you launch, ask yourself: Are you ready for the ride? If the answer is yes, then strap in. It’s going to be one hell of a journey.

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