In Silicon Valley, product testing is the new karate:
As more young children get their pudgy hands on their parents’ mobile devices, tech and toy industry entrepreneurs are feverishly cranking out apps and gadgets aimed at these digital-savvy youngsters. A side effect of this kiddo-market miniboom is a surge in product-testing sessions relying on tot testers.
Much of this product development is centered in the Bay Area, the hotbed of the startup economy. For local tech-minded parents looking to fill their children’s schedules, product testing is the new karate.
“Instead of going to the playground or gymnastics class, we go to the LeapFrog lab,” says Christy Mast, a mother of two in San Leandro, Calif., whose husband works in the biotech industry.