Bay Area entrepreneurs show off inventions at HAX demo day

SAN FRANCISCO -- There may be an app for everything, but a growing number of entrepreneurs don't just want to make apps, they want to make things people can hold and touch.

It was HAXLR8R's Demo Day and a class of entrepreneurs showed off their inventions all with the hope that they will have the next big thing.

One innovator showed off an invention that resembled a coffee maker, but will actually give users a different kind of buzz. "Bartesian is the Keurig for cocktails, capsules and all," Bartesian's inventor said. "You can get a margarita. You can get a cosmopolitan." The bartender adds the spirits and the capsule provides everything else.

The entrepreneurs spent three months in China learning how to get their products ready to manufacture as part of a program called Hax.

"Give them workshops and make sure that they're actually building things right," said Cyril Ebersweiler, HAX managing director.

The products try to solve real world problems, like how to use a smartwatch while holding a drink. Aria goes inside a watch band and senses muscle movements, to control the watch using the same hand that's wearing it. "You control your smartwatches with simple finger gestures," Aria's inventor said.

Then there's the Nailbot, which decorates people's fingernails from their smartphone. A tiny inkjet paints on any design. "You literally swipe right on the touch screen, nail art will instantly appear," said Pree Walia of Nailbot.

There were also gadgets for the feet like Carve, a ski instructor right in your ear. "We use motion sensors and pressure sensors on your ski boots," said Pruthvikar Reddy, of Carve. "It will tell you things like keep your skis parallel, roll one ski over more."

Feetme wants to build the same thing for running, but the product is a bit different. "It's a product for diabetic patients suffering from neuropathy," the inventor said. A hundred pressure sensors give warnings to people who can't feel their feet.

For those with problems feeling their bladder, there's Brightly, which tells you when it's time to use the bathroom. "People who've had prostate cancer surgery, to paraplegics," said Jean Rintoul of Brightly. "Our major competitor is adult diapers, so this is better, because it's preemptive."

Hax is pairing up these inventors with factories and the retailers to make these things a reality.