JD.com builds global distribution channels for smart hardware, expands overseas business and builds a large ecosystem

Just as overseas companies such as Apple and Google have always been regarded by us as pioneers of technological innovation, domestic brands represented by Xiaomi have their own characteristics in market and product strategies. Domestic and foreign manufacturers often have different development ideas and trajectories in the field of technology, and the same is true in the increasingly popular smart hardware industry.

Integrating international elements is of great significance to the construction of the intelligent ecosystem. JD Smart Group recently announced the establishment of an international business department to layout the overseas intelligent hardware market, hoping to extend the scope of its intelligent hardware industry to a deeper and farther level.

Overseas smart hardware is more idealistic and has a sense of mission

On August 20, JD.com's first overseas smart product open day was held at the JD+ Smart Milk Tea House. Compared with domestic smart hardware that generally gives people a "small and beautiful" feeling, smart hardware from foreign entrepreneurial teams is more focused on different levels.

For example, a smart hardware called Hydrobee advocates using water, wind, fire and kinetic energy to generate electricity to provide electricity to poor countries. The product consists of a turbine, a converter, LED light, battery and USB port, and can be attached to an object, a box or a bicycle.

The founder of Hydrobee gave an analogy. If 99% of Chinese people have access to electricity and only 1% do not have access to electricity, the population base has reached tens of millions. However, there are still 1.5 billion people in the world who do not have access to electricity. Hydrobee has currently sold 20 million units, has been certified by many organizations, and has won some competitions. Now the product also hopes to enter the Chinese market and help more people.

Another impressive product that is more in line with China's environmental needs is the air detection device called Laser Bean, which can detect the air quality of all places, allowing people to check the air quality anytime and anywhere on their mobile phones. After detecting where there is good air, it will even prompt you to go there. For a domestic metropolis like Beijing that is about to be covered in smog, this is undoubtedly an interesting and practical product.

In addition, handheld stabilizers for outdoor sports shooting, smart bags with built-in solar energy and GPS devices, and even game module controllers that integrate multiple control devices were all unveiled at JD Overseas Smart Product Open Day. In addition to bringing many surprises, it also allows us to see that overseas entrepreneurs are also realizing their dreams with the help of smart hardware, and for them, the Chinese market also has an irresistible attraction.

Connecting with JD.com’s supply chain allows overseas products to be successfully launched

When developing smart hardware, entrepreneurial teams will always encounter various problems on the road from product prototype to formal launch into the consumer market. The establishment of the International Business Department not only means that JD.com will introduce more and better overseas smart hardware projects into China, but also means that JD.com will export more resources to overseas smart hardware teams, allowing them to land smoothly and eventually reach Chinese users.

As we all know, even for Apple iPhone, China occupies an important proportion in the processing and production process. Therefore, for start-ups, supply chain resources from China are particularly important.

Liu Zihao, CTO of JD Smart Group, said that the next plan for international business is to connect some products to JD's supply chain and help them make the products. JD's crowdfunding team, marketing department, product design department, etc. will be invited to participate to help these overseas smart hardware products find suitable suppliers in China, and then conduct quality inspections, including the help of the R&D department, to confirm that the product meets the listing standards of JD Mall and JD crowdfunding, and finally assist them to sell on JD to complete the entire product process of future international business.

JD.com's smart ecosystem vision expands from domestic to global

JD+ Smart Milk Tea House is a symbol of JD's smart entrepreneurship incubator. This time, it held the first Open Day event for JD's smart international business. It joined hands with ten top venture capital institutions including IDG, Sequoia, DCM, and Qiming, as well as dozens of outstanding overseas smart startups from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and other countries. In addition to providing a good opportunity for overseas entrepreneurs to showcase their projects to the domestic smart industry, the influence of its activities will also radiate to a wider overseas market, which can be regarded as an important measure for JD to expand its overseas market.

JD.com is committed to building an open intelligent ecosystem starting from the entire industry chain. Its support for domestic intelligent hardware entrepreneurial projects from project incubation, product research and development to funding, crowdfunding and market levels can be understood as opening up the path for the vertical development of intelligent hardware. Now, the projects that JD.com is focusing on have extended from domestic to international, which can be understood as a more horizontal and global development trend, further in line with the theme of the openness of JD.com's intelligent ecosystem.

From another perspective, JD Smart is also using its international business to build a platform for openness, integration and communication in the smart hardware industry, and also provides more opportunities for Chinese entrepreneurs to go global.

In the future, through external dialogue and cooperation, in addition to enriching the variety of smart hardware products on the JD platform and enhancing the openness of the smart hardware ecosystem, it will also be beneficial to enhance the vision and capabilities of smart hardware entrepreneurs themselves, and promote the development of the smart hardware industry.

As a winner of Toutiao's Qingyun Plan and Baijiahao's Bai+ Plan, the 2019 Baidu Digital Author of the Year, the Baijiahao's Most Popular Author in the Technology Field, the 2019 Sogou Technology and Culture Author, and the 2021 Baijiahao Quarterly Influential Creator, he has won many awards, including the 2013 Sohu Best Industry Media Person, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Beijing Third Place, the 2015 Guangmang Experience Award, the 2015 China New Media Entrepreneurship Competition Finals Third Place, and the 2018 Baidu Dynamic Annual Powerful Celebrity.