Amazon introduces Build It – a new “crowdfunding” platform for the company’s products

E-commerce giant Amazon has launched a new program called Build It (“Build It”) as part of the company’s Day 1 Editions program. The program serves as a crowdfunding platform that offers users the option to purchase products that have not yet been pre-manufactured, and in case the amount of early purchases reaches the desired destination the product will go into production and be shipped to customers.

Unlike regular crowdfunding platforms, such as Kickstarter or the Israeli Headstart, which allow regular users to upload ideas and products to the platform in order to advertise for customers and obtain the funding needed to realize them, Amazon’s Built It program is designed to introduce the company’s concept products Which are in the pre-production stage, in order to check the level of interest of the customers in them even before the product itself is available for sale.

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At this point Amazon is introducing 3 products as part of the new program:

• Smart Sticky Note Printer – A tiny, smart sticky note printer that works with Amazon’s voice assistant Alexa, and can print a variety of lists or notes, such as shopping lists, to-do lists or even a sudoku quiz. Available by pre-order for $ 90.
• Smart Nutrition Scale – A smart kitchen scale that can provide Alexa with information about the weight of the product on it to allow her to give a voice answer to questions such as: “How much sugar is in the blueberries on the scale?” Available by pre-order for $ 35.
• Smart Cuckoo Clock – A smart cuckoo clock reminiscent of Amazon’s existing Echo Wall Clock, but comes in a retro design with an active mechanical cuckoo, built-in speakers for playing alerts and information and an array of 60 LED lights. Available by pre-order for $ 80.

The use of the Build It platform-like crowdfunding platform comes as an interesting but significant step especially for Amazon. Contrary to the habit of most customers to receive the product in a very short period of time after ordering it, in the case of Built It products it is not even sure if they will actually be manufactured. This allows Amazon to “check” even before production whether there is a high enough interest for it to produce it, which allows the company to test more less routine products, which in a normal process are not sure they would reach commercial production.