The rise of IoT has opened up a world of opportunity for easy automation and control, However, it is frequently the last step of integrating your IoT device to other services that can cause a hold up for at home users. The AutoReco app is changing that. Find out more about the app and the founders in our Q&A with the team.
What brought the AutoReco team together?
Balaji, David, and Stephanie met each other at a previous hackathon. This was Saketh’s first hackathon and he met these great minds during a pre-event mixer.
What was your inspiration for creating the app?
Our goal was to find true automation, to enable comfort and convenience. We are always looking to build out cool IoT and connected devices ideas and this was the perfect opportunity.
What was your technology stack for the project?
Raspberry Pi and sensors. Heroku, Pubnub and Flowroute!!
Do you each have a feature or particular capability that you really wish was included in the app?
Balaji: Integrate more two-way actions so the users can send SMS to control devices on top of getting notifications from devices via SMS.
David: A profile for our platform.
Stephanie: Additional sensors.
Saketh: Statistics based on the usage.
How do you think the ability to utilize SMS differentiates or adds value to your app?
SMS is universal now. More people are comfortable with SMS than taking the time to sign up, download, and learn another app. Interaction with services and connected devices is simpler and non-intrusive through SMS and can increase the context around each interaction. SMS adds value through personalization and gives users the ability to restrict access by deciding who they want to give their number to.
How did you approach the integration of IOT into your project?
Our project was entirely based off of connecting thousands of IoT devices with a library of contextual instances. Rasberry Pi provides an awesome hardware platform for quickly trying and deploying ideas at a low cost. It also provides wide community support and tools. However, it is frequently the last mile of a project, deploying and integration to other services, that can be a barrier. SMS integrations can be vital to scaling the application and adoption of any service.
Anything next on the horizon for the team or the app?
We are hoping to get this project funded.
A little bit more about the team:
Balaji Venkatesh – Software Engineer
Transporter, time machine or cloak of invisibility? Transporter
First computer? HP
Current phone? Android
Favorite app? Google Maps
I once waited in line for…? The hackathon 😀
David Menard – Web Developer, Entrepreneur
Transporter, time machine or cloak of invisibility? Time Machine
First computer? Dell with a floppy disk
Current phone? Android. Samsung S7 Edge
Favorite app? Airbnb
I once waited in line for…? DevWeek Hackathon 2017
Stephanie Flowers – Web Developer, Project Manager, Marketer
Transporter, time machine or cloak of invisibility? Transporter
First computer? Family PC
Current phone? Android & iOS
Favorite app? Snapchat
I once waited in line for…? DevWeek Hackathon 2017
Saketh Pulipaka – Software Engineer
Transporter, time machine or cloak of invisibility? Cloak of invisibility
First computer? Assembled PC
Current phone? Nexus 5x
Favorite app? Quora
I once waited in line for…? DevWeek Hackathon 2017
Interested in learning more about the ways you can integrate SMS into your next project? Check out our Messaging API.
