“Good ideas sell themselves and the capital appears almost magically”
Initt, his new company has inherited the knowledge of over 10 years of entrepreneurship and innovation in the technology industry. And it shows.
Achievement after achievement have become an important place in the technological scene and confidence of some of the biggest brands in Chile and Europe.
How and when did you start your business?
About 12 years ago I founded my first company called CR Searchlight, a entrepreneurial laboratory funded within my family, by which were born more than 10 brands in various industries including food, entertainment, technology and logistics.
The last of the companies who are born under the umbrella of CR Searchlight is Initt, where we focus on technological innovation to produce tools that add value to organizations, improving from their production processes, to the way they interact with the environment.
To date, the company has collaborated with important national and international organizations in the industries of tourism, power generation and pulp, among others, through the development of innovative technology projects.
Innit it has been recognized for its technological contributions in areas such as smart cities, open government and smart health.
Our company has a presence in Chile, in the cities of Concepción and Santiago, and Europe, in the city of Vienna, Austria.
What do you do?
We innovate mainly by developing hardware and software solutions.
Who else integrate your company?
The company is composed stably for 9 people and over 20 variably. Initt’s strategic level (the C level) consists of 3 Inacapinos: Jonathan Hernandez – CTO, Claudio Baeza – COO and CEO.
What elements do you have the alumni INACAP that makes them entrepreneurs?
Family stories. I think many of us were born in vulnerable environments but our families dreamed a different future. With that as a base, entrepreneurship occurs naturally.
How do you face daily challenges it means to be an entrepreneur?
Taking the day with good humor. The business environment is full of boring people and I respond to that trying to make every business meeting a gathering of friends, try to make negotiations with clients a friendly and relaxing situation. I dislike the seriousness (in the bad way) with which many do business. The main thing is to have fun and enjoy ourselves in our company in a big way.
We have built a company that allows us to enjoy our families every day and that makes everything easier.
Do you think that your studies gave you the tools you need to perform in your work?
INACAP has made significant efforts to bring entrepreneurship to their students. I witnessed the beginning of these efforts and I certainly got important lessons.
What are you working on now?
We are currently developing three internal projects in the areas of space telemetry, smart cities and facilitating communication.
We also continue to develop for our customers; We are currently working on building geolocation systems and optimization of resources.
Recently we have been selected to form part of the 13th generation of Startup Chile, so we are designing the infrastructure that will support “Rabell”, the project we are developing.
What are your next challenges?
Consolidate our expansion in Latin America and Europe as it is a vital cornerstone of our growth strategy.
Keep learning and adopting technologies through our continuous improvement program.
We want to strengthen our budding relationship with NASA and work hard in Startup Chile.
Another of our challenges is to support the emergence of new technology companies in the region. We are connected with decentralization and so we have a strong commitment to the creation of technological entrepreneurship ecosystem in Concepción.
How did they get to compete in NASA Space Apps Challenge?
We were invited to participate in this incredible contest in which NASA poses challenges in several categories, some directly related to space operation. We accepted and we were one of the two winning teams among 27 teams.
What did you make?
We developed and presented an application of telemetry called ISSaLive.
ISSaLive is a web application that allows real-time monitoring from the earth the vital signs of the International Space Station.
The application has a very simple interface, almost like a game, and space enthusiasts and researchers can learn about the different variables are that are handled aboard the station (pressure, temperature, power generation, etc.), can create their own interactive information panels generate and obtain statistical data.
The data used comes directly from the ISS (International Space Station) and is supplemented with information from Wikipedia.
What are the next steps?
Now we have to represent Chile in the international competition online. If we win in that instance, we’ll travel to NASA to showcase our technology.
What did it mean for you. (have gotten the first place)?
We create space technology, but keep our feet on the ground.
We are very pleased with the recognition but when the lights go out, we go back to our lab to continue creating as usual. We do not see ourselves as stars because we’re not.
It will definitely open up many possibilities and we want to be wide awake to seize them.
Anything else you’d like to add?
I would encourage Inacapinos to undertake, thinking outside the court that many try to draw. There’s no obligation of raising capital, subsidies and other herbs. Many opportunities can be undertaken only with the desire, no money is needed at all.
Companies are like children, and you should provide what they need according to how they manifest its needs; probably, many businesses do not need more than a couple of pesos to start. Good ideas sell themselves and the capital appears almost magically.
The equation of entrepreneurship has some known positive variables: leadership, tenacity, ideas, good team, experience and knowledge.
The invitation is to dare. There is nothing to lose.