IE 11 is not supported. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser.

Tech firm sees profits as creative freedom

To understand Traci and Hunter Downs' business goals, consider the name they chose for their Honolulu-based company -- Archinoetics.
/ Source: Pacific Business News (Honolulu)

To understand Traci and Hunter Downs' business goals, consider the name they chose for their Honolulu-based company -- Archinoetics.

Roughly translated from Greek, it means "original thought."

"We always want to be coming up with the next new idea," said Traci Downs, 36, the company's chief operating officer and principal owner. "That's our passion."

The Downses moved to Hawaii in 2001 to work for NovaSol, but split off "amicably" in 2005 to create Archinoetics.

In 16 months, Archinoetics has received more than $2 million in grants from the military and private companies, such as Microsoft, to apply technology to products that improve human performance. The Downses are pleased with their commercial success so far but say their ultimate goal is for their products to be sold to the public and be sufficiently profitable so they don't have to chase grants.

In August, they will get that chance when they release their first product to the public, a wristband that monitors sleep effectiveness. They say the wristband, called "the sleep bracelet," will mainly be distributed to physicians and should cost around $300.

The Downses plan to make about 100,000 units. If it sells well, they say they can bring other products to the market, such as a portable brain-imaging system that can determine when a fighter pilot goes through sensory overload during combat situations.

"The more we grow in terms of sales and contracts, the more new ideas we can pursue," said Hunter Downs, a 42-year-old medical physicist and Archinoetics' chief science officer. "We don't want to be creative just for creativity's sake. There needs to be a real world application and purpose to what we make."

But the Downses are cautious about commercial success, admitting that it has the potential of shutting off their creative "light bulb."

"We've seen it happen to lots of tech companies," explained Hunter Downs, who received his Ph.D. in medical physics from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. "They come up with a good idea, but once they start selling it, they don't think of anything new again."

To ensure that Archinoetics doesn't "sell out," the Downses say they will spin off any of their products that are commercially successful into separate companies with independent CEOs "to worry about selling it." This may mean less money for the Downses personally, but Hunter says that's fine.

"We're staying small and we're staying in Hawaii," he said. "We want to be diversified creators, not sellers."

Traci Downs agrees and says one of the best ways Archinoetics can maintain a creative environment is to hire compatible employees.

"Archinoetics is literally my family because my husband and I are there all the time," she said. "If we show up to the office and there's bad office politics, we're forced to think about that instead of new ideas. One bad apple can ruin everything creatively."

When hiring someone new, the entire Archinoetics staff interviews the applicant as a group. But the interview is more about determining a potential employee's "friendliness" than competence.

"Résumés get them in the door," Traci said. "After that, it's all about how well they fit into the group."

Downs also relies on interns because she says it's a long personality test that "weeds out bad chemistry." Four of her 10 employees were once interns.

It would seem the Downses also target youth when hiring to keep their company's mind fresh. They say they don't intentionally target young employees, but besides the Downses, only their chief financial officer, Joe Cooper, is over the age of 32.

"That's not deliberate," said Hunter. "But one good thing about young people is that they tend to have new ideas."

So that employees feel comfortable sharing those ideas, the Downses say they consciously try not to be "intimidating bosses." They do things with employees after work, and eat lunch with their staff, using it as an informal forum to discuss new ideas.

"They're very open to our ideas," said Erin Nishimura, a 25-year-old from Hawaii who has worked at Archinoetics for two years. "They're letting me write my own grant proposals for an idea I'm interested in."

Inside their Bishop Street office, the Downses say they've intentionally created a "lax" environment by allowing employees to dress in shorts and slippers.

"It's very Hawaiian-style in here," Hunter said. "We've had applicants come from the Mainland and, despite being qualified, didn't hire them because they wouldn't do well in a Hawaii setting."

But the Downses say "lax" doesn't mean lazy. Almost all of their employees regularly log more than 60 hours per week.

"It's very fast paced and exciting," said Evan Rapoport, who has been with the Downses since their NovaSol days. "You don't realize you've worked a long day because you've been doing what you love."

For the Downses, who have been married for seven years, the work day never ends.

"We always talk about work," said Hunter. "In line at the movies, when our son is asleep -- actually, when he's awake, too. I guess we're always talking about work. We can't help it."