The Inventor of Onewheel | Kyle Doerksen, Future Motion
Timestamps are as accurate as they can be but may be slightly off. We encourage you to listen to the full context.
Podcast Summary
In this episode, Kyle Dirksen, founder and CEO of Future Motion (creators of Onewheel), shares the fascinating journey of building the self-balancing electric skateboard from a garage prototype in 2008 to a company that has sold over 400,000 units. Dirksen discusses how he drew inspiration from snowboarding to create what he describes as "basically a skateboard with one giant wheel with a motor inside it," transforming a simple tinkering project into a thriving business. (00:50) The conversation covers critical early decisions like choosing domestic manufacturing over offshore production, navigating supply chain challenges during COVID, and building a sustainable business without relying on heavy venture capital funding. (17:32) Dirksen emphasizes how they focused on creating a sport and lifestyle rather than just a gadget, leading to customers averaging around 1,000 miles per board.
- Main themes: Zero-to-one product creation, contrarian business decisions (domestic manufacturing, capital-constrained growth), building a sport/lifestyle brand, and the challenges of hardware startups in market creation versus established categories.
Speakers
Kyle Dirksen
Kyle Dirksen is the founder and CEO of Future Motion, the company behind Onewheel. He studied mechanical engineering and computer science at Stanford University, where he first learned control systems that would later prove crucial for his self-balancing vehicle. Before founding Future Motion, Dirksen worked as a product design consultant in the Bay Area, designing everything from kids' toys to medical devices, and helped spin out an electric bicycle company called Faraday Bikes, giving him valuable experience in the small vehicle industry before launching Onewheel.
Key Takeaways
Strategic Patience in Market Creation
Dirksen demonstrates the importance of timing when creating entirely new product categories. His first prototype in 2008 worked but lacked the supporting technology ecosystem - lithium batteries were primitive, sensors cost $90 versus the eventual $3-4, and hub motors barely existed. (02:14) Rather than forcing the market, he shelved the project until 2013 when the technology landscape had evolved sufficiently. This patience allowed him to launch with a much stronger technological foundation, avoiding the premature market entry that doomed similar products like Segway.
Contrarian Manufacturing Strategy
While most hardware startups defaulted to Chinese manufacturing in 2014, Dirksen chose domestic production for cash flow advantages and intellectual property protection. (17:32) This decision provided crucial operational benefits: customers could order, the product would be built, shipped, and then invoiced 30 days later - dramatically different from tying up hundreds of thousands in overseas container orders for months. Additionally, since no one knew how to build onewheels, keeping manufacturing domestic allowed them to retain proprietary knowledge while maintaining quality control for a safety-critical product.
Capital-Constrained Growth Philosophy
Rather than raising massive VC rounds that set unrealistic expectations, Dirksen took a deliberately capital-constrained approach to building the company. (13:16) He studied high-profile hardware startup failures like Juicero, which raised over $100 million by promising consumable-based business models, only to fail spectacularly. By maintaining reasonable funding expectations and focusing on unit economics from day one, Future Motion avoided the "growth into death" trap where companies sell more products at a loss, creating bigger financial holes.
Building Sport Over Gadget
Dirksen consciously positioned Onewheel as a vehicle and sport rather than a consumer gadget destined for "drawer wear." (42:01) This philosophical decision influenced every aspect of the product - from using CNC machined aluminum frames built for abuse, to creating racing competitions and supporting a community of professional riders. The result is remarkable engagement: the average Onewheel has around 1,000 miles on it, demonstrating sustained usage rather than one-time novelty purchases. This approach created a more sustainable business model and stronger brand loyalty.
Customer-Centric Product Philosophy
Despite pressure to implement subscription models and data surveillance common in VC-funded hardware companies, Dirksen maintained a customer-first approach. (46:42) Onewheels don't include GPS tracking, users control their own data, and the company provides free firmware updates that improve performance rather than locking features behind paywalls. This philosophy extends to repairability - they now sell replacement parts and battery modules directly to customers, supporting long-term ownership rather than planned obsolescence.
Statistics & Facts
- Sensor costs dropped dramatically from $90 for a single-axis gyro in 2008 to $3-4 for a six-degree-of-freedom IMU chip within a few years, enabled by high-volume applications like the Nintendo Wii and iPhone. (06:34)
- Future Motion has sold over 400,000 Onewheels to date, with customers collectively riding over 200 million miles, and the average Onewheel having around 1,000 miles on it. (41:21)
- Only 3% of customers are "really loud" with complaints while 97% are having a great experience, highlighting how vocal minorities can skew perception of customer satisfaction. (53:06)
