Gate reviews in person, in the Bay Area
At each gate you can sit at a table with the founder, hold the units, and decide to go, adjust or stop. The Shenzhen engineers join by video, so you hear from the people who built it.
What happens at a gate review
A gate review closes one fixed-scope stage of your project. It runs [about 90 minutes — to confirm] and follows the same agenda every time:
- Units on the table. We demo the hardware against the targets agreed at the start of the gate, then you use it yourself.
- Measured numbers. Power draw and battery life, latency, RF results, audio or location accuracy. Each number is shown against its target, with the test setup written down.
- Open risks. What could still go wrong, how likely it is, and what it would cost in time or money.
- Cost update. The BOM and the landed DDP estimate, with any change since the last gate explained.
- Handover checklist. We walk through the files delivered at this gate: schematics, layout source, firmware repository, BOM, test reports, SBOM where firmware ships.
- Decision. You choose to go to the next gate, adjust scope, or stop. If you continue, you get a fixed quote for the next gate. If you stop, you keep every file and unit you paid for.
You get written minutes after the review, with every action item, its owner and its date.
Where we meet
We hold reviews at a fixed meeting location or at your office. We will confirm the exact address with each invitation.
Meeting location
[Meeting location — to confirm]
[Parking, transit and building access notes — to fill]
We do not publish a street address until it is a place you can actually walk into for a meeting. If your team prefers, we come to you.
What to bring at each gate
You do not need hardware experience to run a good review. You need the people who will judge the product and the facts only your team has.
Gate 0 · Feasibility
- Your product requirements, even as a rough list
- Target retail or contract price and first-year volume
- Backend and data constraints: cloud provider, region, security review needs
- Any existing dev-kit demo, model or prototype
Gate 1 · Works-like prototype
- Your model or pipeline running on a laptop, so we can compare it with the device
- Test accounts or a staging endpoint for your backend
- The people who will judge audio, location or sensor quality
Gate 2 · EVT
- Industrial design feedback on the first enclosure
- Field-test plan: who uses the units, where, for how long
- Questions on the schematics and firmware repository
Gate 3 · DVT / PVT
- Your company details for certification filings (FCC grantee code, legal name)
- Packaging, labeling and regulatory text decisions
- Your US warehouse or 3PL receiving details for DDP delivery
How scheduling works
- All gate review dates are set at kickoff, with the gate's schedule. Dates move only if the gate's exit criteria are not met, and you hear about it in the weekly report first.
- Reviews start in the late afternoon Pacific time. That is the next morning in Shenzhen, so the engineers join fresh.
- Shenzhen is 15 hours ahead of Pacific time during US daylight saving time and 16 hours ahead in winter. China does not change clocks.
- Units for the review are hand-carried or shipped DDP to the meeting place before the review day.
- Outside gate reviews, you can ask for an in-person working session at any time.
Questions about reviews
Do we have to meet in person?
No. Every review can run by video, and many clients mix both. In-person reviews help most at EVT and DVT, when you want to handle units and enclosures yourself.
Is there a charge for in-person reviews?
Your statement of work for each gate says which reviews are in person and what they cost, if anything. [Policy on review fees and travel outside the Bay Area — to confirm]
Can we come to Shenzhen instead?
Yes. Clients are welcome at the lab and at the line during pilot builds. How Shenzhen visits work.
Book the first conversation
The first call is free and can be in person if you are in the Bay Area. Tell us in the form that you want to meet. A Duobay engineer replies within 2 business days.