Founding Story
Cradlewise was founded in 2018 by Radhika and Bharath Patil. The husband and wife team attended the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), where they studied electronics and systems design. Armed with inventive mindsets, the co-founders went on to create tech for drones, robots, and smartphones for Qualcomm and Texas Instruments.
Yet, their most successful venture was born from a frustrating experience they shared with countless other parents. While raising their first child, the Patils often found themselves exhausted after strenuous night-time shifts with their newborn. Every time their baby twitched, the couple was forced to swiftly rock her back to sleep. This 24/7 commitment raised the question: why couldn’t a crib automate such a straightforward task? Their answer was the first version of Cradlewise, a prototype developed in 2014 for their first baby. It used motors to mimic the rhythmic bouncing the baby had grown used to, lulling it straight to sleep. At last, the Patils could enjoy a night of uninterrupted slumber.
Five years later, the couple decided to revive this idea with an official funding round. Cradlewise raised $1 million from various angel investors, followed by a $7 million investment from Footwork in 2021. In between, it won TIME’s Best Inventions Award and began shipping to various locations around the United States.
The Cradlewise team has since expanded to include medical experts to effectively track sleep patterns. Dr. Anoop Rao, attending neonatologist at Stanford, and Dr. Chitra Akileswaran, founder of $80M-valued wellness startup Cleo, ensure the crib’s functions are tailored to specific newborn developmental stages. Just as much as it is a smart crib, Cradlewise is a mental health solution for parents. Its existence is tailored towards the betterment of newborn care for all parties involved.
Product
Cradlewise attempts to cover just about everything a parent might seek in a crib. Even the concept of a crib itself is reimagined — Cradlewise doubles as a bassinet, allowing it to accommodate babies from zero to 24 months old.
Bouncing — Cradlewise’s flagship feature is its robotic bouncing. The crib uses sophisticated motors to create a soft bobbing effect that can be adjusted through its corresponding app. Further, the crib is able to detect when a baby is about to cry, causing motors to automatically activate the bounce.
Video Monitor — There is a video and audio monitor built directly into the crib that feeds a live stream directly to the app. The camera is also capable of night vision, a useful addition to a product used primarily at night.
White Noise — The crib has built-in speakers that channel white noise throughout the crib. These can be adjusted to play white, pink, or brown noise depending on a baby’s sleep preferences.
Sleep Tracking — All of these hardware components are also used to gather sleep data over time. From this, a baby’s sleep cycle, level of alertness, etc. can be used to effectively time bouncing and help parents keep an eye on their little one’s health.
Competition
Happiest Baby (SNOO Smart Sleeper): Happiest Baby created SNOO in 2016, a smart bassinet that uses a rocking motion and white noise to soothe babies back to sleep. It is controlled with a corresponding app and uses an algorithm to detect fussing or crying. SNOO’s manufacturer, Happiest Baby, has raised $79M in total funding, with Bulb Capital as the leading investor at $5M in the most recent round. SNOO and Cradlewise both use this rhythmic rocking motion to soothe babies back into sound sleep. However, SNOO only initiates the rocking stage when the baby begins to cry, whereas Cradlewise detects disturbances while the baby is still quiet. Cradlewise’s bouncing is also soundless and stops automatically, while SNOO produces noise and requires a third party stop. As a bassinet, SNOO is suitable for newborns up to six months old, while Cradlewise can be used for babies up to 24 months old.
4moms (RockaRoo): 4moms created the RockaRoo in 2010, a smart cradle used to rock babies to sleep. It has a portable design and is powered by an AC adapter. The RockaRoo’s manufacturer, 4moms, has raised $60M in total funding, with Bain Capital Ventures as the leading investor at $20M in the most recent round. Once again, Cradlewise and the RockaRoo share the same basic purpose of rocking babies back to sleep. Yet, the RockaRoo’s design emphasizes its portability and convenience, while Cradlewise focuses on detailed sleep metrics. The RockaRoo is geared towards consumers who only desire a basic rocking feature, constituting a significantly lower base price of $159.99 when compared to Cradlewise’s $1,649 base price.
Nanit: Nanit, founded in 2016, specializes in smart baby monitors that mount onto or adjacent to cribs. The monitor feeds a 1080p livestream of the crib to a connected app and tracks breathing and sleep analysis. Nanit has raised $74.6M in total funding, with Google Ventures as the leading investor at $25M in the most recent round. Nanit’s camera rivals the one built into Cradlewise’s system. Cradlewise’s camera records at a lesser, 720p resolution and has been reported to freeze often. On the flip side, Nanit’s camera collects insights on sleep patterns and puts forth recommendations for sleep training – however, these metrics are purely informational. Cradlewise collects similar data, but uses it to actively adapt rocking and temperature levels within the crib, ultimately adding an additional level to its data analysis.
Hatch Baby (Rest+): Hatch Baby created the Rest+ in 2019, a smart noise device that plays white noise and nature sounds to lull babies to sleep. The device has a maximum dB output of 96.3 dB, which makes it stand out when compared to competition. Hatch Baby has raised $27.1M in total funding, with True Ventures as the leading investor at $7M in the most recent round. Rest+ is comparable to the white noise machine built into Cradlewise’s system. Rest+’s white noise machine is capable of singing lullabies and acting as an alarm/night light for the baby. Cradlewise’s noise machine is only capable of producing static noise, but is customizable to white, pink, and brown noise tracks, which simulate noises from the womb.