Design firm win prestigious award for pioneering invention
Innovative Cardiff-based design firm FauvelKhan has won a prestigious award at the annual SXSW (South by South West) Accelerator Competition in Texas for their interactive AiR Guitar T-shirt.
The firm picked up the ‘bootstrap’ award for the greatest achievement with the least amount of money, gaining world recognition alongside software from several major Silicone Valley businesses.
Developed in association with South Wales rock band The Last Republic, the T-Shirt uses a pioneering music technology which allows fans to play along with their favourite band online using just a computer and webcam.
“The AiR Guitar doesn’t just provide an authentic experience for music fans,” said company Director Warren Fauvel. “It’s also an important promotional tool for bands, enabling musicians to analyse the impact of their physical goods and interact with fans online.”
The product uses the fast growing technology called Augmented Reality, which allows a computer to read physical gestures and objects in the real-time. When the Air Guitar T-shirt is worn, it can be recognised by a user’s webcam, allowing them to ‘strum’ to music and simulate playing a guitar.
FauvelKhan was set up by Warren Fauvel and Luke Khan in 2007 and is quickly earning international recognition for ground-breaking concepts and projects, having recently won innovation awards in both Geneva and Kuwait. The firm battled over 400 technology businesses to be reach the final of SXSW Accelerator and presented as the only contestant from the UK in their category.
Warren Fauvel said: “All of the team here are really proud that we were able to represent Wales and the UK in our section of the competition and I’m delighted that I was able to do us justice by bringing an award home in the face of such strong competition!”
"This year’s competition, judged by industry titans Chris Hughes and Craig Newmark, attracted a large number of strong presenters across categories,” said Chris Valentine, Microsoft BizSpark Accelerator at SXSW Coordinator. “The Accelerator community of industry influencers and investors congratulates the 2011 Accelerator winners.”
FauvelKhan are continuing development of the T-shirt with several updates planned over the next year, including some new instrument variations.
Fancy having a play? The AiR Guitar T-Shirt is available to try out here: Play Air Guitar <http://playairguitar.com/>
“The AiR Guitar doesn’t just provide an authentic experience for music fans,” said company Director Warren Fauvel. “It’s also an important promotional tool for bands, enabling musicians to analyse the impact of their physical goods and interact with fans online.”
The product uses the fast growing technology called Augmented Reality, which allows a computer to read physical gestures and objects in the real-time. When the Air Guitar T-shirt is worn, it can be recognised by a user’s webcam, allowing them to ‘strum’ to music and simulate playing a guitar.
FauvelKhan was set up by Warren Fauvel and Luke Khan in 2007 and is quickly earning international recognition for ground-breaking concepts and projects, having recently won innovation awards in both Geneva and Kuwait. The firm battled over 400 technology businesses to be reach the final of SXSW Accelerator and presented as the only contestant from the UK in their category.
Warren Fauvel said: “All of the team here are really proud that we were able to represent Wales and the UK in our section of the competition and I’m delighted that I was able to do us justice by bringing an award home in the face of such strong competition!”
"This year’s competition, judged by industry titans Chris Hughes and Craig Newmark, attracted a large number of strong presenters across categories,” said Chris Valentine, Microsoft BizSpark Accelerator at SXSW Coordinator. “The Accelerator community of industry influencers and investors congratulates the 2011 Accelerator winners.”
FauvelKhan are continuing development of the T-shirt with several updates planned over the next year, including some new instrument variations.
Fancy having a play? The AiR Guitar T-Shirt is available to try out here: Play Air Guitar <http://playairguitar.com/>
