SmartWheel Driving Device Update | Season 4
18 teens die in the U.S. everyday from car crashes, and the number one cause is distracted driving. That’s why a group of teen inventors, called The Inventioneers, have invented a smart steering wheel, that they say will help put an end to this problem. Will they earn a deal on
Shark Tank SmartWheel Update
- Entrepreneurs: “The Inventioneers” – TJ, Jaiden, Emily, Kate, Paige, Breyton
- Business: Steering wheel deterrent for distracted drivers
- Ask: $100,000 for 15% equity
- Result: $100,000 for 30% equity
- Sharks: Robert Herjavec and Mark Cuban
The Inventioneers shared that their SmartWheel could determine if a driver had removed their hands from the wheel. This helped to determine if the driver was engaging in distracting habits, and then sent a report to a third party, to alert them of the negligence.
A pilot study at MIT had been done, in which 90% of the participants indicated that they found the SmartWheel to be effective. If this wasn’t impressive enough, the teens went on to share that their invention had earned merits and recognition from then President, Barak Obama.
When asked about sales, TJ shared that they were still the the prototype stages. He explained that the group planned to set aside $75,000 to get the product into production. Sales would be online, retailing for around $200, with manufacturing costing about $50 per unit.
Before long, Daymond John, Barbara Corcoran, and Kevin O’Leary all went out, but Robert Herjavec was interested. He offered $100,000 for 30% equity, contingent on securing a licensing deal. At this point, Mark Cuban spoke up, asking to join Robert’s deal. He even convinced Robert to drop the contingency.
When Robert agreed to the terms, The Inventioneers accepted the deal! What happened next for these young inventors? Keep reading our SmartWheel update to find out!
Unfortunately for the Inventioneers, the deal with the sharks never did close. As of 2023 the SmartWheel has not moved past the prototype stage, and no active website can be found. This will be our final SmartWheel update.
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Andrew Smith is the founder and owner of Shark Tank Recap. He is a longtime Shark Tank fan that has been watching it for years and has seen every episode multiple times. His friends know him as the Shark Tank expert, because he can answer any question about the show! His favorite Shark Tank products are Bertello's pizza oven and Bug Bite Thing!