Subject: BLK
Black-Owned startup works w/ NASA, Hyundai; Calls on Black celebrities, investors & engineers to help disrupt the $300B Global Tire Industry
Black-Owned startup The SMART Tire Company is calling on Black celebrities, investors & engineers to help disrupt the $300B Global Tire Industry. SMART Tire makes the world's first high performance airless tires, based on shape memory alloy technology originally invented at NASA.
AKRON, Ohio, Feb. 21, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The SMART Tire Company (STC) was formed to commercialize a new category of advanced tires invented at NASA for the Mars Rover program. Their first product, a high-performance airless (never flat) bicycle tire made from shape memory alloys, was named to TIME Best Inventions of 2023 and is due out this year. In future development are automotive and trucking tires, starting with an early proof of concept being developed for Hyundai Motors. Last year, SMART tires were also featured on a NASCAR-sponsored moon rover concept at the Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, CO.
Founder & CEO of The SMART Tire Company, Earl Cole, is a serial entrepreneur and inventor, who was not only the first black man, but the first unanimous winner of the top rated CBS reality competition show, Survivor (Fiji). He is best known not only for this individual achievement, but orchestrating the first and only all black show finale, where the top 3 contestants would vie for the $1M prize (Cole won in a landslide 9-0 vote).
When NASA came calling in 2021, Cole was enrolled in a USC doctoral program, but he decided to put those plans on hold in order to launch SMART Tire. The NASA Startup Studio is a program designed to identify top entrepreneurs capable of successfully commercializing NASA technology, culminating in a pitch contest at the end of the program. Cole once again took home 1st prize, seeing the potential in applying game-changing technology to a $300B global tire market.
According to Cole, "The tire industry is a legacy industry that hasn't been disrupted in over 100 years. Do you remember when Goodyear and Michelin were just startups? Probably not. None of us ever had the opportunity to get in on the ground floor of these multi-billion dollar tire companies that we all depend on to this day. With us, you have that opportunity."
In alignment with its commitment to diversity and inclusion, and in celebration of Black History Month, The SMART Tire Company is now calling upon black celebrities, investors and influencers everywhere to join them on their journey in shaping the future of mobility and building the next, great American tire company.
"We are thrilled to announce these milestone achievements during Black History Month," said Cole. "As we celebrate the rich contributions of black leaders, inventors, and entrepreneurs throughout history, we recognize the importance of diversity in driving progress and innovation. We are committed to building a team and a product that reflects the diversity of our society and empowers individuals from all backgrounds, by reimagining the wheel."
Media Contact
Media Relations, The SMART Tire Company, Inc, 1 (323) 380-0887, [email protected], www.smarttirecompany.com
SOURCE The SMART Tire Company, Inc
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