Making More Makers Eric Pan:

by+Nancy+Gong

Eric Pan， 32， is the founder of Chaihuo Makerspace. Pre- mier Lis visit to Chaihuo pitchforked Pan to national prominence.

A pioneer in the heated maker movement in China， Pan founded Seeed Studio， a hardware innovation platform for makers， in Shenzhen in 2008. Five years later， Seeed Studio developed into the largest of its kind in China and the third largest in the world. The same year， Pan became one of the three young Chinese entrepreneurs inscribed on the Forbes China list “30 Under 30.”

Pan has constantly created new platforms， which have inspired makers both at home and abroad to develop different products. In 2011， Pan set up his first Chaihuo Makerspace in Shenzhen. The following year， he introduced Maker Faire – an international pageant for makers – into China. In 2014， Shenzhen became the seventh city in the world to host the event.

Supermarket for Makers

In 2007， Pan quit Intel Chengdu branch and arrived in Beijing after traversing more than half of Chinas territory. He said he had learned a lot during his one year in Intel， but he could foresee what he would be in 10 years if he continued working in the company.“The road ahead would be too smooth and straight， and I was afraid my life would stay unchanged this way until my death.”

Thus， Pan decided to start his own business in Beijing. “The concept of open-source hardware came to me as I probed what kind of business I could start，” he recalls. The idea led Pan to the Italian open-source electronics platform Arduino， which attracts the most active and talented makers from around the world.

Soon， Pan realized that these makers often faced shortage of appropriate hardware. He made posts on the Internet to solicit their needs； and， then found the electronic components for assembling them into customized hardware modules that met their respective demands. As a result， Pan received plenty of orders and then started his business to manufacture and sell customized hardware.

In July 2008， as the orders surged， Pan founded Seeed Studio in Shenzhen to provide open-source technology and modules for makers around the world and help them realize mass production and marketing of their hardware prototypes.

His investment in Seeed Studio soon paid back. “In the beginning， my company focused on catering to demands of makers from online communities，” Pan explains， “and achieved profitability in the first year. Web communities are effective sales channels.”

In 2009， Pan got to know Lan Lesnet， a Dutch maker who is in favor of open-source hardware development tools. Lesnet often visited do-it-yourself websites to share his experience as a maker. Pans company helped Lesnet turn his prototype into a product manufactured in small batches. Lesnet sold 1，000 such products in a week. Afterwards， he registered his company Dangerous Prototypes in the United States. With the help of Seeed Studio， Lesnet turned most prototypes he had designed into saleable products.

Seeed Studio has developed a mature business pattern： Providing hardware modules to help clients design prototypes； and then assisting them to turn prototypes into marketable products.

To date， Seeed Studio has developed nearly 1，000 hardware modules with various functions and provided services to more than 2 million techno innovators worldwide. Pan likens Seeed Studio to a “supermarket” that provides all necessary supplies and services for makers – ranging from design to manufacturing， prototyping， marketing， retail， and wholesales.

Chinas “Makers Hollywood”

Since its establishment， Seeed Studio has targeted meeting the demands of makers and providing services to them. Since the maker culture is in a nascent stage in China， the company focuses on the overseas market.

In 2010， when he participated in the Maker Faire in the United States， Pan visited Noisebridge， a hackerspace founded by Mitch Altman. Impressed by its creativity-inspiring environment， he decided to set up a similar makers space in China.

The following year， Pan started Chaihuo Makerspace， the first of its kind in Shenzhen and the second in China. Chaihuo （literally， “firewood”） aims to create a free， open space for makers to kindle their passion for invention， and foster collaboration and exchange.

Chaihuo Makerspace regularly organizes parties， workshops and forums for sharing creative ideas， through which many find partners to complete their projects. Chaihuo also helps makers with ideas on startup projects， finding investors and establishing a supply chain.

With the help of Chaihuo， many successful startups have been launched. For instance， the project “brainwave-controlled flying ball” has raised US$10，000 as startup fund from the world-famous crowdfunding site Kickstarter. The brainwave-controlled flying ball is more than just a toy； it can be used as an appliance to teach neuroscience.

In the eyes of Pan， Chaihuo provides soil to cultivate the maker spirit and serves as the foundation of the maker pyramid.“Currently， China still lags far behind developed countries in the number of makers，” Pan remarks. “But， I believe the group will thrive as increasing numbers of youngsters become makers. They will embrace another round of industrial revolution with the rest of the world.”

In April 2012， Pan applied to OReilly Media， Inc. for authorization to hold the Maker Faire in Shenzhen. When it opened in 2014， Shenzhen became the worlds seventh city to host the event.

Pan believes that Shenzhen will attract more and more makers from around the world. “The younger generation of entrepreneurs in Shenzhen is more open-minded and willing to risk doing something different， and cooperate and exchange with makers. For this reason， the city may attract increasing numbers of makers. I hope it will become a ‘Makers Hollywood in China.”