Simon Tian

Simon Tian

Tian as a guest speaker at the Wearable Technology Show in London, 2014
Born Simon Tian
(1994-02-24) February 24, 1994
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Nationality Canadian
Alma mater Marianopolis College (attended)
Occupation CEO of Neptune
Home town Brossard, Quebec, Canada
Awards 2015 Thiel Fellowship

Simon Tian (born February 24, 1994) is a Canadian tech entrepreneur and inventor.[1][2] He is the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of consumer electronics and wearable technology company Neptune.[3][4][5] Born and raised in Montreal, Canada, Tian dropped out of high school at the age of 18 to start Neptune,[3][6] and has raised a total of around $2 million from crowdfunding sources alone.[7][8][9][10] Tian is a 2015 Thiel Fellow,[11][12] having been awarded $100,000 by PayPal co-founder and venture capitalist Peter Thiel,[13][14] and was named one of the top 30 Quebecers under 30 by Les Affaires in 2014.[15]

Early life

Tian was born to Chinese Canadian parents in Montreal, Quebec, in 1994.[9] He was raised in Brossard, Quebec,[3] a suburb of Montreal, and attended high school at Jean de la Mennais College, a French school in La Prairie, Quebec.[16][17][18] Tian is fluent in English, French, and Mandarin.[16][17]

Career

Tian started Neptune in January 2013, while he was 18 and still studying at Marianopolis College in Westmount, Quebec.[3] Before even building a prototype or incorporating a company, Tian posted some conceptual drawings of a smartwatch, the Neptune Pine, on a website he built, issued a press release announcing the product, and proceeded to receive more than 20,000 orders for the device in a few weeks.[3]

Tian then traveled to China to meet with contract manufacturers to have the device developed.[3] In November 2013, he launched a crowdfunding campaign for the Pine on Kickstarter.[3][7][19] Within 27 hours, the campaign reached its funding goal of $100,000,[18] and ultimately went on to raise more than $800,000 in 30 days.[9] The device started shipping by August 2014,[20] and eventually became widely available through Best Buy and Amazon.[21][22] The Pine has gotten mixed reviews from the press, generally praising its extensive set of features, while criticizing its large size.[23][24]

In March 2015, Tian announced the Neptune Suite through an Indiegogo campaign, raising $1.16 million in a month.[8][10] Christopher Mims of the Wall Street Journal described the Suite as "a literal interpretation of the fact that a smartwatch, smartphone and tablet are all just different size windows on the same set of apps and services."[25] Daniel Cooper of Engadget commented on the ambitious nature of the product vision, writing, "Technology is all about big ideas, and this one from Simon Tian will probably need its own aircraft hangar."[26] Cliff Kuang of Wired called the Suite "a taste of what computing should be in 2025",[27] and the Verge wrote, "the idea of putting all the brains and power of mobile computing into something attached to your body instead of in a pocket or bag is wildly attractive."[28]

In November 2015, Tian was invited by the Mayor of Montreal Denis Coderre to attend the 2015 Montreal Trade Mission to China as one of the city's representatives.[29][30][31] Tian has been a speaker at numerous industry events such as the CES,[32] the Wearable Technology Show in London,[33] and the WT Conference in Munich, Germany.[34]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Bogart, Nicole. "Canadian entrepreneur wants to replace your smartphone with smartwatch 'hub'". Global News.
  2. ↑ "Neptune's Duo will put your whole world on your wrist". VentureBeat.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "How a Canadian whiz kid plans to upend the smartphone market". The Globe and Mail.
  4. ↑ "Once you have this smartwatch, you may throw out your smartphone". CBC.
  5. ↑ "This 19-year-old Montreal teen has raised over $200,000 on Kickstarter for his Neptune Pine smartwatch". Financial Post.
  6. ↑ Fehrenbacher, Katie (2014-03-16). "The team behind the Android watch phone, the Pine, plans a line of wearables". Gigaom.
  7. 1 2 "Neptune Pine: Smartwatch. Reinvented.". Kickstarter.
  8. 1 2 "Neptune Suite - One Hub, Infinite Possibilities". Indiegogo.
  9. 1 2 3 "Neptune Pine SmartWatch Crowdfunds Over $800,000 on Kickstarter". Crowdfund Insider. 2013-12-22.
  10. 1 2 "Neptune Pine's story a testament to 'just do it' mentality". Montreal in Technology.
  11. ↑ "Billionaire Peter Thiel is giving these 20 kids $100,000 to drop out of college and start companies". Business Insider.
  12. ↑ "Montreal whiz kid to be paid $100,000 to quit school". CTV Montreal.
  13. ↑ "$100K to drop out of school: 4 Canadian students win fellowship". CBC.
  14. ↑ "Four young Canadians ditch school for $100K fellowships | Toronto Star". Toronto Star.
  15. ↑ "Top 30 des jeunes de 30 ans et moins en TI". Les Affaires.
  16. 1 2 "Simon Tian | LinkedIn". LinkedIn.
  17. 1 2 "Education: Simon Tian - Founder & CEO at Neptune Computer Inc. from Montreal, Canada Area". ProfiWiki.
  18. 1 2 "EWeek Keynote Speaker: Fireside Chat with Simon Tian, Founder of Neptune". Eventful.
  19. ↑ "Teen Dropout Gets $200,000 In Crowdfunding For This Invention". The Huffington Post.
  20. ↑ Tim-o-tato (2014-08-06). "Neptune Pine Smartwatches Being Shipped Out to Kickstarter Backers". Droid Life.
  21. ↑ "Neptune Pine 16GB Smartwatch with GPS - Large - Black". Best Buy Canada.
  22. ↑ NEPTUNE Pine 16GB Smartwatch - Retail Packaging - Black - Amazon.
  23. ↑ "Yes, we really had to wear this in public to review it for you". Digital Trends.
  24. ↑ Aguilar, Mario. "The Joy and Misery of Life With a Grotesquely Large "Smartwatch"". Gizmodo.
  25. ↑ Mims, Christopher (2015-04-05). "Why the Time Isn't Ripe for Smartwatches". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660.
  26. ↑ "Neptune outs dumb screens, accessories for its weirdo wrist computer". Engadget.
  27. ↑ "Neptune Suite: A Taste of What Computing Should Be in 2025". WIRED.
  28. ↑ Lowensohn, Josh (2015-03-16). "One company is trying to sell a smartwatch that powers phones, tablets, TVs, and more". The Verge.
  29. ↑ "Liste des Participants à la Mission Chine" (PDF). Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal. City of Montreal. October 2015.
  30. ↑ "Positive results for Mayor Coderre's trade mission to China :Strengthening institutional, political and economic ties between Montréal and Chinese cities". City of Montreal. City of Montreal. November 6, 2015.
  31. ↑ "The Mayor of Montréal to preside a trade mission to China". Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal.
  32. ↑ Miller, Chris. "Interview with Neptune Pine's CEO". IdoNotes.
  33. ↑ "Wearable Technology Show| Connected Living Conference Programme". The Wearable Technology Show.
  34. ↑ "11th Wearable Technologies Conference 2014 I Europe". Wearable Technologies Conference. 2013-08-20.


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