Last week I heard a new term: HESaaS. HESaaS stands for Hardware Enabled Software as a Service and the idea is that there are new SaaS opportunities that come from the addition of specialized hardware. Put another way, the Internet of Things (IoT) is going to enable a variety of new HESaaS opportunities.
A local Atlanta Tech Village HeSaaS startup is Gimme Vending (disclosure: I’m an investor). Gimme makes a device that transmits vending machine data to the cloud for more efficient inventory management and product merchandising analytics. Without the hardware to send the data to the cloud, there’s no SaaS business.
Add HeSaaS to the list of reasons to be Bullish on SaaS Growth.
What else? What are some other hardware enabled SaaS opportunities?
David Cummings on Startups 
Where did you hear that term David? This makes me think of the discussions related to how sensors will drive the big data revolution that we had in my Emerging Technologies course in the Georgia Tech Steven A. Denning Technology and Management program.
Our particular group project involved “HESaaS” products for healthcare, similar to FitBit. This interest led me to this great book: Sensor Technologies: Healthcare, Wellness and Environmental applications.
Also, have you listened to Harry Stebbings podcast, The Twenty Minute VC? Harry e-mailed me this morning after I shared an article about him in the Angeloop newsletter. I’d be glad to intro make an introduction if you’re interested. His podcast is phenomenal.
See you around the Village.
This term (while a mouthful) does describe the solution that many hardware startups (ours included) find themselves in when discussing their business model. To get the same point across I have said “we are a software company that includes a hardware solution”. I like this new term better.
Thanks for the insight and for putting this concept out into the larger ecosystem.
Although an old post, I thought I’d share our “HESaaS”. Yodeck is a Digital Signage platform. As many others in the industry, our service is a cloud-powered SaaS, but it is using on-premise hardware (Players) to deliver the actual output on screens.
Although it may not sound like the typical SaaS case, it is. We subsidize hardware with Annual Plans, so no barrier or CAPEX there. Physical installation is easy and Players come preconfigured, so anyone can use it. We issue updates to both backend and players every 6-weeks. So, why not a Hardware-enabled SaaS after all?
Funny enough, I was searching for companies with this model (as I am working with a HeSaas company here in Atlanta called Wahsega)
We are pivoting and entering this space. Glad I found this, the Gimme guys are friends so I will ping them for some advice. Granted they are B2B2C but always happy to glean more info from an ATL company.
Thank you David!