Preface:
“If you don’t build your dreams, then someone will hire you to help them build theirs.”
After 20 years of working in corporate America to achieve financial success and stability, these words…in this moment…resonate with my wife and I more than ever before. My name is Todd Rogers and I need your help to achieve something greater than just a financially prosperous endeavor. I need your help to build a dream…
A Bit About Me:
From childhood to present day, I’ve always been a builder and a dreamer. My fondest memories in my early years were of creating robots, machines, buildings, and vehicles out of Legos, cardboard, tape, and (secret ingredient) imagination. Circumstance and chance steered me later in life to seek out financial stability. We all need food, shelter, and the means to survive. But… There is so much more beyond that first step if we have a chance and the will to take it!
Our Mission:
Robotic Legends is dedicated to providing comprehensive information, resources, and support for robotic sports (combat or other events) enthusiasts. Our goal is to ensure those with the passion to design, build, and compete can bring their ideas and imagination to life!
Why choose this mission for funding?
For Me: 7 years ago, I began rediscovering my passion for building and started a non-profit group called “Robotic Legends” to create a forum for others who share this passion. We were a small team (~5-10) but extremely motivated and excited to build and compete in the emerging sport of “robot combat”. We inspired each other and built robots with soul and a mean kick when the fight began! You didn’t need $5,000-$50,000 to build a 250 pound robot and sign up for the TV show Battlebots. (The big league!) These bots we made are between 150 grams and 3 pounds and cost less than a few hundred dollars to build. So much fun packed into such a tiny package! The best part is the sincere love and encouragement this community of builders/competitors brings with them. Not just from my small team but literally from every person in every event I’ve attended over the years. “For the love of the game…”
Now…4 years later, I have left my 6-figure corporate job at Fidelity Investments as a Senior Program Manager with one goal: To do what is possible to help bring this emerging sport (with its gorgeous blend of ingenuity, competition, and sportsmanship) to the next level across the U.S. My hope is to empower builders of all ages with the knowledge, support, parts, and tools needed to turn their robot combat dreams into a reality and remain a catalyst for the next generation of this sport.
For You: If your passion align with ours, you have a chance to play a major role in the future of this sport. Income from product sales is 100% part of the overarching business plan, but candidly… Net profit margins and YoY projections aren’t only why you should choose us. You should choose us for funding because there are hundreds of these smaller bot competitions each year across the U.S. and thousands of builders who need our help. We have a chance to work together to manifest this emerging sport into a widespread and lasting phenomenon. (How often can we say that?)
How do we get there?
In full candor, I promised my wife I would take it easy for a few months this year before getting too deep into business planning. (It’s been a while since we had a proper vacation!) This means, as of today, I can only share the high-level goals for implementation in late 2024-early 2025. If you want to discuss more, I would love to meet and talk through our vision and hear your ideas!
1) Consolidate Educational Material for Robot Combat: Create a primary digital platform (web based at first) to organize and create easy access for builders to understand and enter the sport. (e.g., tutorials, links, combat event links)
a. As of today, these resources are HIGHLY scattered across the web.
2) Robot Part Sales and Merch: Provide a centralized digital platform (paired with education) to find the best motors, tools, and materials to build and compete in the robot combat sport.
a. Just like education, these products are scattered across dozens of websites and produced by small companies across the country.
3) Robot Combat Events and Standardization: We will collaborate with the existing community leaders to create and execute standards, so each event is easy to find, attend, and/or set up.
a. There are roughly 2-3 “main” websites used to find robot combat events. Events are scheduled and managed by small groups and there is little coordination or consistency beyond the SPARC rule set.
b. Long-term, this is an opportunity to “lead the charge” for Robotic Legends and use these events to drive more participation in our support and products.