Astro is a newcomer to the connected-home space focused on apartment dwellers and renters, designing simple products that fit existing routines rather than acting as another hub. Its first product, Twist, is a wirelessly controlled LED light bulb with a built-in speaker that screws into any existing lamp and is operated by a circular dimmer instead of a mobile app. The bulbs consume 8–10 watts, are designed to last at least 12 years, and can shift from white to yellow light based on time of day, location, season and weather. Speaker components are made by Tymphany (a manufacturer for Sonos and Bose) and connect via AirPlay with no pairing required, syncing across rooms. Twist is available for pre-order at $249 for a kit that includes one speaker bulb, two LED bulbs, and a dimmer, and Astro plans to roll out additional smart-apartment products over the next couple of years. The company has raised $3 million in seed funding led by Lerer Hippeau Ventures with participation from Crosslink Capital, Winklevoss Capital, Zelkova Ventures, Rugged Ventures, Maiden Lane and others. Astro operates in stealth and is described on its LinkedIn page as a home automation company. Public information about its product, go-to-market or roadmap is not provided in the article. An SEC filing shows the company raised $350,000 via an equity-only offering against a $1 million offering size. The filing lists two directors, Philip James and Shaun Springer. Springer is described on Twitter as a software developer, entrepreneur and consultant. Both directors were previously at Lot18. The article does not disclose revenue, users, investors, or other operating metrics.

Total raised

$3M

Funding rounds

2

Latest round

Seed

Latest activity

Jun 2015