FISHERS, Ind. (WISH) – John Wechsler is the co-founder of Launch Fishers, a think tank for entrepreneurs in fisheries. He is also the co-founder of Spokenaut, which was developed from Launch Fishers.
“A friend of mine had the idea of sending videos to his brother who was serving in the military overseas. They used to send care packages and he had the idea of sending a video in the package, this was years ago,” Wechsler said.
Over the past year and a half, Wechler teamed up with a friend to bring that concept to fruition. He said it’s not about reinventing the wheel, it’s about finding a new way to use it.
“The interesting part of this is that it’s been hidden in plain sight for, I think, many years, right? With the pandemic, the idea of QR codes has re-emerged as a viable technology. Streaming video is something that’s been around forever, now we’ve put it together in a unique and new way,” Wechler said.
“We’ve seen it used a lot in the classroom. Now back to school, we see it being used in higher education admissions offices. Notes, cards, letters, thank you gifts,” Wechler said.
They can even be used to provide video instructions.
“Everything from an Airbnb host wanting to show them how the remote control works in their rental, to a service technician from an HVAC company showing a new customer how to change the air filter,” Wechler said.
Wechler said he has high hopes for Spokenot, but it is one of several technology businesses poised to expand in the fisheries sector.
“You look at the amount of venture capital investment that has happened in fisheries over the last decade. Here at Fishers, we’ve seen hundreds of millions of dollars invested in tech companies. Thousands of jobs have been created, and there’s a tech community of entrepreneurs, inventors, software developers, designers who can really birth a product or a company that can change the world,” Wechler said.
