Konnect for a smart living

The technology that takes the power of internet beyond computers is called Internet of Things, IoT, which makes the technology ecosystem smart.

This next big wave of computer technology is poised to be a $15 billion market in India, with nearly 120 firms currently offering solutions in the IoT space. One such startup which believes in using automation to make lives better is Hyderabad-based Konnecting Internet of Things (KIOT).

Founded 2016, KIOT is into research, developing and manufacturing of IoT products and solutions, catering to diverse segments including smart home, smart hotel, smart seats (cinemas), smart aquaculture, smart street lights, smart residence, smart commercials and smart agriculture.

The idea to build a startup and to develop smart products took shape while two of the co-founders of KIOT were working for another startup.

Vijay Cholleti, Co-founder, KIOT says, "Initially, we pitched the idea of IoT to the CEO of the startup we were working for. By 2017, we developed our mobile app, built the first product titled KIOT Red, a smart remote and successfully onboarded that CEO to our startup."

The startup soon realised the possibility to scale their hardware and software platform, which led them to enter different industry verticals. Currently, KIOT has over 25 products, with plans to introduce 10 new products by 2020.

Having worked on research and development for two years, KIOT has a proprietary Firmware OS called KortexOS, a proprietary Cloud platform termed as Erica and have published the patent received for their concept being modular sensors.

Speaking about the future of IoT, the co-founder says, "Two years back, the market was not ready for IoT products in India, but with governments launching smart city initiative in 2018, we have found a market, and we are in talks with the Cambodia government for the same.

The future of IoT is that out of ten devices connected to internet at least seven will be IoT devices. Hence, there is a good potential for KIOT products."

From January 2019, the startup actively entered the market with its products. At present they have a network of five distributors and recently onboarded two dealers, with plans to extensively add more distributors by end of the current financial year.

KIOT has a tie-up with two OEM (original equipment manufacturer) companies and is in talks with other consumer electronic companies.

In B2C sales, KIOT has smartened up more than 300 homes. For B2B sales, they are working on multiple PoCs (proof of concepts) and projects namely for NIT Warangal, Naresaun University (Thailand), a clientele with more than 4,400 hotels in North America, Asian Cinemas, etc.

In total, KIOT products are available in six states including Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi-NCR. Moreover, by mid-May, it will be present on both B2C and B2B ecommerce platforms.

Since December 2018, Kiot has manufactured more than 6,000 units, while ongoing production is 10,000 units.

KIOT procures 80 per cent of their components from Indian providers, while 20 per cent of IC's (Integrated Circuits) are imported from China as they are not manufactured in India.

The PCBs (Printed Circuit Boards) used by them are manufactured in India, while the

assembly of all their products takes place at Shamshabad in Hyderabad.

The 27 team has 16 developers from niches institutes like IIT, with further plans to be a 50-member team in the next four months. The bootstrapped startup has till date infused a capital of Rs 3.75 crore, mostly into R&D and manufacturing.

With the commencement of sales from January 2019, KIOT has earned a revenue of Rs 80 lakh, and expects to garner Rs 9 to 10 crore for FY 19-20. Moreover, they are looking to raise first round of funds in the next three-four months period.

How different are their products from other players in the market? Cholleti says, "Our USP is being cost-effective and of highest quality. As we have a patent published, the price of automation reduces drastically, which supports us to provide our product at the lowest price.

Secondly, in a single product we have brought in 360 degree of automation, which makes it less expensive to replace a faulty sensor."

Charting out the roadmap of products being researched and developed in the next one year, the co-founder says, "we are coming up with an occupancy sensor, an amalgamation of multiple sensors which can detect the presence of a human in

the room.

There are other such sensors in the market which are less accurate, but our product will have an accuracy of over 80 per cent."

KIOT represented Startup India delegation at the World Economic Forum – The Annual meeting of the New Champions at Tianjin, China, in 2018.

And, they topped second in the 10 hottest Hyderabad startup awards presented by HYSEA, in 2018. 'Great products are not made by individuals but by Great Team' is the startup's moto.