2020 was undoubtedly a year for the history books, and we here at Owl Labs were right alongside you through it all. It was the year the world went remote and the year that introduced the Work From Anywhere #WFA movement. It was a year of social distancing and a year of never-before-seen virtual connection. To celebrate the end of a monumental year and the beginning of a brand new one, here are our top 20 moments of 2020.
1. TIME's 100 Best Inventions of 2020
Every year, TIME magazine releases their curated picks for the top global inventions that make the world a better, smarter, and more fun place. This year, the chosen 100 inventions were all groundbreaking for how they helped change (and improve) the way we live, work, play, and think in the age of COVID-19. Owl Labs is proud to be included as one of TIME’s 100 Best Inventions of 2020 and as the winner of the Connectivity category.
2. CES 2020 Best in Robotics
The Owl Labs team was honored to be included in this year’s Consumer Electronics Show showcase that brings together the latest and greatest in startups. Owl Labs' Meeting Owl Pro was recognized as a CES 2020 Winner in Best of Innovation for Robotics, and an Honoree in Computer Peripherals and Accessories.
3. Inc's Best Workplaces + Inc. Editor's List
This year marks Inc.'s fifth annual Best Workplaces, the prestigious list of companies is curated in partnership with Quantum Workplace. Employees were asked to complete a survey on topics like benefits, trust in senior leadership, change management, and career development. We're honored to be included among great companies and are proud to also be named to Inc.'s Best Workplaces Editors' List, an editor-selected shortlist of the 2020 Workplace winners.
4. Red Dot Design Awards
The Red Dot Design Award is a German international design prize awarded by Red Dot GmbH & Co. KG. every year since 1955. We are proud to have our Meeting Owl be recognized this year as “a sophisticated all-in-one device which creates a feeling of togetherness and camaraderie even across great distances.”
5. SXSW Finalists
Although the annual SXSW festival was cancelled this year due to COVID-19, we were still excited to have our Meeting Owl Pro be recognized as a finalist for the 23rd annual Innovation Awards honoring the hottest new advances in the field of robotics and hardware.
6. Owls used by 50,000+ companies
In the year of COVID-19, seamless remote communication quickly became an invaluable resource. The Meeting Owl Pro stands apart for a few reasons, most notably its smart 360° camera that uses proprietary voice and vision recognition technology to focus on whoever is speaking. This unique feature helps remote meetings replicate that coveted in-person feel, and is why the Meeting Owl Pro is now used by more than 50,000 companies and universities around the world.
7. Powering hybrid learning for 2,000+ educational institutions
Source: Owl Labs
2020 was the year that the world embraced distanced and hybrid learning. With help from the Meeting Owl, students who are learning remotely get the feeling that they're right back in the classroom with their teacher and peers. Therefore it comes as no surprise that over 2,000 schools, colleges, and universities around the world use the Meeting Owl to connect students and educators.
8. Zoom-Recommended Hardware Partner
Source: Owl Labs
In addition to being a big year for us, 2020 was also a monumental year for Zoom, the popular video conferencing platform. That is why we are honored that The Meeting Owl Pro is a Recommended Hardware Partner of Zoom and Zoom's only recommended 360-degree camera that features 1080p HD camera resolution, 360-degree visual and sound, and an 18-foot audio pickup radius.
9. State of Remote Work US + UK 2020
Source: Owl Labs
For Owl Labs’ 4th annual State of Remote Work report, we partnered with the leading remote analytics firm, Global Workplace Analytics, to learn more about the current state of remote work in 2020 and what lies ahead. We uncover remote work statistics and gathered the current work from home trends to provide you with a comprehensive remote work benchmark report during COVID-19 in both the US and the UK.
10. Equal Pay Day Report 2020
Source: Owl Labs
Equal Pay Day is a symbolic day dedicated to raising awareness and improving the gender pay gap between men and women around the world. It is acknowledged annually by calculating how far into the new year women have to work in order to earn the same amount of money men earned in the previous year.
11. Seen in: WSJ, Boston Globe, Washington Post, Business Insider, WSJ, MSNBC, Forbes
Source: Owl Labs
We were honored to be recognized by these reputable publications throughout the year and to be given the opportunity to continue sharing our inclusive remote meeting tools globally.
12. Global product expansion: Europe, UK
Frank Weishaupt, CEO of Owl Labs states said it best, “Maintaining effective communication, regardless of location, is more crucial than ever. As many employees and students continue to learn and work remotely, whilst others may return to the office or classroom, there’s an increased demand in products and services that help productivity and allow blended teams to communicate effectively. We are excited to launch the Meeting Owl Pro to the UK market where decisions are currently being made on the future of the workplace and how to keep teams connected while physically apart.”
13. Global product expansion: Canada
In June of 2020 when nearly 75% of Canadians working from home were doing so for the first time, we recognized it as an opportunity to help our neighbors to the north adjust to their new remote work lifestyles. In advance of the Canadian expansion, Owl Labs conducted a survey on the current landscape and state of remote work in Canada and found that Canadians like to collaborate. Over half (53%) of respondents say they have 2-5 meetings a day on average and 26% have 3-8 meetings or more a day.
14. Global product expansion: Japan
Earlier this year, the Japanese government focused on preventing the spread of COVID-19, by strongly insisting people work from home. This is when Japan-based SOURCENEXT decided to place more focus on partnering with software services and hardware from Japan and around the world that are aimed to assist and improve the work-from-anywhere environment. SOURCENEXT will serve as Owl Labs' exclusive go-to-market partner selling the Meeting Owl Pro in Japan.
15. 2.8M views on our Owl Labs Japanese Commercial
Source: Youtube
Our partnership with SOURCENEXT wasn’t the only thing that took off in Japan this year, but our commercial for the Meeting Owl did too— by attracting over 2.8 million views.
16. Documentary: Behind the Scenes with Laurence Fishburne
Earlier this year, our unique product and mission caught the attention of the team at Behind the Scenes with Laurence Fishburne— an award-winning educational program that informs viewers of the very latest innovations and trends impacting the world through short and long-form documentaries— and we were hand-selected to participate in a documentary on business tech and innovative solutions for professional collaboration. We were honored to get the opportunity to share our story, and those of a few of our customers, Andela and Ogilvy.
17. Thanksgiving Day commercial
We were psyched to be featured in a commercial supporting the life-changing initiatives of the Salvation Army, the Dallas Cowboys, and Ford.
18. Owl Labs Team doubled
There is nothing we are more proud of here at Owl Labs than our talented team. In 2020, as our company expanded around the globe our team doubled. Thank you to all of our new team members, we are so lucky to have you and can’t wait to see what you all accomplish in the new year!
19. New HQ
In 2020, we designed and opened a new, hybrid-friendly office in Downtown Boston for the Owl Labs flock. With communal collaboration spaces, individual workstations, huddle rooms, and sanitation stations, our new digs are the workplace of the future. We can’t wait for our team to take full advantage in 2021.
20. The Price is Right - we made it!
The last top moment on our list, but the flashiest one of all! This year, the Meeting Owl was given the ultimate honor— being featured as a price on The Price is Right!
Thanks for joining us on the journey that was 2020 and we look forward to the connected future the Meeting Owl will bring to remote and hybrid teams around the globe.