How a soccer ball launched an unusual career

Three kids are playing soccer on a dusty road in a remote village in Nigeria.

But they’re not “just” playing soccer; they’re also generating energy because what they kick and toss around is not an ordinary soccer ball. It’s a SOCCKET, the invention of entrepreneur Jessica O. Matthews, who developed the ball as a class project at Harvard University in 2008, when she was just 19 years old.

Tackling “Energy Poverty”

As a dual citizen of the United States and Nigeria, Matthews had first-hand experience with a very real problem: “energy poverty.” Her first few inventions — the SOCCKET, but also jump ropes and skateboards — were all made to solve this problem.

They all take kinetic energy created from being tossed, kicked, and otherwise moved around and store it in renewable and portable energy sources. Everyday objects, like a soccer ball, suddenly become power outlets — quite literally!

“It was never about the SOCCKET.”

But Matthews’ ambitions aimed higher:

The success of the SOCCKET’s gave Matthews something important: the attention she needed to go farther. She founded “Uncharted” and evolved it — step by step — first to a power solutions company, then to a sustainable infrastructure company.

Raising Capital as a Black Female Founder

In 2016, Matthews sought investment for Uncharted. While raising money is never easy, it is — sadly — even harder for a black female founder. Matthews was well aware: “It’s frustrating to know that you’re working way harder than your peers to get a fraction of what they’re getting.”

But she hit a home run. Not only was she successful, but she also set a new precedent for black women in tech: she secured the largest Series A financing round ever raised by a black female founder until then.

In a different area of the business, however, Matthews had to learn the hard way — from her own mistakes. She realized she had hired too quickly: “At one point, we had a headcount of 30 and scaled down. And as we scaled down, productivity increased. You have to hire slowly!”

A Bold Hiring Strategy

Many founders have to learn this lesson at some point, sooner or later. But the way Matthews solved the problem was quite creative.

Not only did she slow down hiring to a more deliberate, thoughtful pace. She also employed a rather unique strategy:

Advisors are by no means a unique strategy, but Matthews takes this model to an extreme. In a 2018 interview with Forbes, she said that “now, we have 17 employees and 17 advisors.” An unusual balance for sure — but it worked for her.

An Intentional Public Profile

Over the last couple of years, Matthews has won a mountain of awards and accolades: Harvard University Scientist of the Year, Forbes 30 Under 30, Female Founders 100, … For many entrepreneurs, awards like these would have to be shelved under “vanity.” They don’t really contribute to the success of their companies. But in Matthews’ case, they made a lot of sense — because her goal is to influence public infrastructure. A task for which you need a strong public profile.

2021 gave a great example: the US Secretary of Energy appointed Matthews to the “Electricity Advisory Committee.” There, she played a key role in advising the Department of Energy — and came even closer to the decisions that really matter to her.

———

Matthews’ story isn’t one of pushing a business to ever more growth. And yet — or maybe because of that — there’s much to learn from her path.

First, because she approached her big goal in small steps. She understood that it would be almost impossible for her to push for “infrastructural change” right away. She laid stepping stones for herself — in the form of energy-producing soccer balls, jump ropes, and skateboards. These fresh, unusual innovations got her the attention she needed. And once she had captured this attention, she masterfully pivoted her company to a much bigger, systemic purpose.

Second, because she dared to make a very unusual hiring model work for her. Having 17 employees and 17 advisors is a strategy you won’t read about in any business textbook. But she learned what did not work for her — and then had the courage to take a new, unusual route instead.

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