SUMMER 2011: Our friend got hit by a car.
He was riding his bicycle home at night after a thief stole his bicycle light. His story isn't unique. As it turns out, 1 in 3 city bicyclists have had their bicycle light stolen and 80% of bikers frequently forget their lights at home.

Fortified was founded by MIT bike geeks

who love building and love biking.

Slava is the customer guy who loves building companies. He's an electrical engineer-turned entrepreneur. Fortified is his 4th rodeo: before making the bicycle light, his last companies were in educational technology, real estate, and night life. His first company sold "pretty rocks" to his neighbors. He made a 65 cent profit.

Tivan is the sales and operations guy. He studied consumer psychology at UPenn and previously led a product development team at a large fashion retailer. Also an entrepreneur, he's started companies in online marketing, real estate, and even personalized wake-up calls.