PrototyperLab was born out of frustration with an outdated, opaque, and overpriced product development system. This is engineering, reimagined for startups.
Tai launches his first product—a custom paintbrush set. Pre-agent Alibaba era meant navigating broken English emails and confusing MOQs. What should have been a simple sourcing job took 6 months across multiple Chinese suppliers. This frustrating experience sparked a decade-long journey developing 100+ SKUs and understanding what founders really need.
Quang, founder of Topica Native ($50M+ edtech platform), builds a robotics workshop in Vietnam to train hardware engineers. Working with programmers building physical robots, he sees how traditional engineering fails early-stage innovators—too slow, expensive, and complicated for testing ideas.
Tai and Quang team up to prototype consumer electronics. They’re shocked how little has changed since 2011—same outdated pipelines, communication gaps, and “minimum 1000 units” mentality. Frustrated by an industry operating like it’s 1995, they decide to build something for startup speed and founder control.
Le Bui (25+ years in product design across U.S., China, Vietnam) joins the team. His Fortune 500 and startup experience bridges the gap between napkin sketches and manufacturing reality—the missing piece for taking founders from concept to scalable production.
PrototyperLab goes live with transparent pricing, fast timelines, and small minimums. Solo founders can now go from idea to testable product in under 30 days—no factory, big budget, or engineering degree required.
The modern hardware founder doesn’t need a factory—they need a partner. Someone who can move fast, explain the tradeoffs, and build something real without burning through runway before launch.
PrototyperLab is built for that founder.
This isn’t theory. It’s the exact system our founders wish existed when they got started.
Engineering shouldn't be reserved for companies with million-dollar budgets.
No markup games. No shady factories. Just clear communication and honest timelines.
Founders need to test fast and pivot faster. We cut through the delays.
Prototypes aren't for show—they're for validation, testing, and growth.
Entrepreneur turned product developer. Started navigating China's pre-agent Alibaba ecosystem in 2011 and has since launched over 100 SKUs across consumer electronics, furniture, and lifestyle products. Obsessed with solving one problem: why is building something physical still so hard for founders?
Engineer, educator, and founder of Topica Native (a $50M+ edtech platform). Re-entered the hardware world in 2019 by training engineers and building programmable educational robots. Brings software startup speed to hardware development.
Mechanical engineering design expert with over 25 years of product development experience. Former founder of a design consultancy in California. Le has worked with clients across the U.S., China, Vietnam, and India to develop everything from consumer electronics and medical equipment to industrial tools.
If you’ve got a product idea that needs to move fast—from idea to prototype, from prototype to production—you don’t need a factory. You need a fast, flexible, founder-focused partner.