Current Events > Do you want a $400 machine to squeeze juice pouches?

(+) Yeah! (+)

Silicon Valley thinks you do

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-04-19/silicon-valley-s-400-juicer-may-be-feeling-the-squeeze

One of the most lavishly funded gadget startups in Silicon Valley last year was Juicero Inc. It makes a juice machine. The product was an unlikely pick for top technology investors, but they were drawn to the idea of an internet-connected device that transforms single-serving packets of chopped fruits and vegetables into a refreshing and healthy beverage.

Doug Evans, the company’s founder, would compare himself with Steve Jobs in his pursuit of juicing perfection. He declared that his juice press wields four tons of force—“enough to lift two Teslas,” he said. Google’s venture capital arm and other backers poured about $120 million into the startup. Juicero sells the machine for $400, plus the cost of individual juice packs delivered weekly. Tech blogs have dubbed it a “Keurig for juice.”

But after the product hit the market, some investors were surprised to discover a much cheaper alternative: You can squeeze the Juicero bags with your bare hands. Two backers said the final device was bulkier than what was originally pitched and that they were puzzled to find that customers could achieve similar results without it. Bloomberg performed its own press test, pitting a Juicero machine against a reporter’s grip. The experiment found that squeezing the bag yields nearly the same amount of juice just as quickly—and in some cases, faster—than using the device.

Juicero declined to comment. A person close to the company said Juicero is aware the packs can be squeezed by hand but that most people would prefer to use the machine because the process is more consistent and less messy. The device also reads a QR code printed on the back of each produce pack and checks the source against an online database to ensure the contents haven’t expired or been recalled, the person said. The expiration date is also printed on the pack.

Evans, 50, follows a diet of mostly raw, vegan foods. Technology was a new thing for him, but he picked it up quickly. He said he spent about three years building a dozen prototypes before devising Juicero’s patent-pending press. In an interview with technology website Recode, he likened his work to the invention of a mainstream personal computer by Apple’s Jobs. “There are 400 custom parts in here,” Evans told Recode. “There’s a scanner; there’s a microprocessor; there’s a wireless chip, wireless antenna.”

In fundraising meetings, Evans promised a revolutionary machine capable of squeezing large chunks of fruits and vegetables, said two people who agreed to invest in the company. Evans secured funding in 2014 by showing 3D-printed renderings of the product without a working prototype, said the people, who asked not to be identified because they signed nondisclosure agreements.

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers joined Alphabet Inc. and others in funding Juicero. Evans’s subscription model had hit on a sweet spot for venture capitalists, said Brian Frank, who invests in food-tech companies through his FTW Ventures fund. The successes of Nespresso and Dollar Shave Club have made VCs eager to chase such deals, he said. “Investors are very intrigued by businesses that combine the one-time sale of hardware that ends up leading to repeat purchases of consumable packages,” said Frank, who doesn’t own Juicero shares.

I want to take a moment to think about the techies who invested in a $400 Capri Sun machine.

Edit: it apparently used to be $700. I regret the error.
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So it's a juicer. I have one of those. Bullet Blender. Was like $35
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Antifar posted...

an internet-connected device that transforms single-serving packets of chopped fruits and vegetables into a refreshing and healthy beverage.

Battle. Network.
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Irony posted...

So it's a juicer. I have one of those. Bullet Blender. Was like $35

Correction: it's a juicer that only works with proprietary bags of fruit.
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technology has basically become a parody of itself
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The device also reads a QR code printed on the back of each produce pack and checks the source against an online database to ensure the contents haven’t expired or been recalled, the person said. The expiration date is also printed on the pack.

classic
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The startup guy compared himself to Steve Jobs. Lol
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can it at least store several hundred different types of bags and give you a selection where you can drink different glass every minute?
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I suppose it beats the juice company that just sold water
https://twitter.com/LisaMcIntire/status/359850224207941633
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what's the point of buying unsqueezed juice compared to regular juice from walmart?

FightingGames posted...

what's the point of buying unsqueezed juice compared to regular juice from walmart?

The innovation
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I would pay $1000 for an Internet connected juicer tbh.
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Does it think cheap ass gamers who don't even buy games to buy it? No.

Does it think some yuppies would buy it? Probably.

My god this is dumb.
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Also this was mad fun of last year. Y'all are late to mock it.

It's okay to not take a company's side.
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Antifar posted...

“There are 400 custom parts in here,” Evans told Recode. “There’s a scanner; there’s a microprocessor; there’s a wireless chip, wireless antenna.”

"it has abs, ac, and power steering too"
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Antifar posted...

It's okay to not take a company's side.

Product is stupid for me, but im not in the market for overpriced products. I don't care how others spend their money.

CruelBuffalo posted...

Antifar posted...

It's okay to not take a company's side.

Product is stupid for me, but im not in the market for overpriced products. I don't care how others spend their money.

Something something symptomatic of late-stage capitalism something something
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CruelBuffalo posted...

Im not in the market for overpriced products.

No one is. You can just say it's dumb, it's okay.
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Antifar posted...

CruelBuffalo posted...

Im not in the market for overpriced products.

No one is. You can just say it's dumb, it's okay.

I did. It's dumb. But I also know it's not for me. Lol im not about that rich life. If you're rich enough where money doesn't matter they may want one

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2017-04-19/silicon-valley-s-400-juicer-may-be-feeling-the-squeeze
Like I said we aren't the target market for this. I can definitely see high end hotels stocking these and it's easy cleanup for the hotels.

It's like criticizing the dyson $400 hair dryer. We aren't the market for that.

considering that juicing is just about the dumbest fucking idea to begin with (lets take a piece of food, squeeze all the sugar out of it to drink and discard the only healthy part of it. might as well just drink a coke), spending that amount of money for a device is just ridiculous.
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LMAO
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Antifar posted...

The device also reads a QR code printed on the back of each produce pack and checks the source against an online database to ensure the contents haven’t expired or been recalled, the person said. The expiration date is also printed on the pack.

LMFAO
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