APC cardboard computer

This was a project between 2011 and 2014.

Like Jobs and Gates, we believe the PC is one of the most remarkable tools humans have ever created. Great tools improve with time. They don't go away. Many common computing tasks, such as number crunching, data storage, and communications have shifted to the Internet. As a result, a very low cost computer – with access to the Internet – can be just as valuable as a much more expensive computer.

APC was born from our love of computers and our realization that the PC needed a fundamental redesign. The redesign that we offered was a computer that was more accessible, and more valuable, because you did not have to pay for functions that you don't need and won't be using.

  • First working prototype.
  • Inspiration from some heroes.
  • You could easily open APC and connect various things to the GPIOs.
  • The board.
  • Easy to recycle materials.
  • Simple. Open.
  • We built APC inside a large company. I think it could have been a startup.

Where’s APC now? We had to stop due to internal resources. But let me share a few more words:

A lot of people thought it was a bad idea to make anything related to PCs. A few people think it’s a good idea.

If you step back and look at the PC market, nobody is innovating here except Apple. In fact, I can hardly think of something more nuts to try (in tech) than building PCs. That’s kind of like trying to build cars now. The resources required are extreme.

But if you think of PCs as tools like the automobile – tools that are here to stay, then to redesign it with a different future in mind might make some sense. And the fact that nobody is really trying to innovate in this space means there’s room to fail and iterate until we find the right product/customer fit.

It’s still possible.