Skypod CEO, Richard Jardine, Talks Digital Time Capsules and the Future

Until CEO Richard Jardine founded digital time capsule company, Skypod, sharing messages and memories with loved ones into the future was stuck in the past.

Thanks to Skypod’s patent-pending technology, however, anyone around the world can create and share memories, messages, and words of wisdom with loved ones all around the world, months or even years into the future.

Skypod CEO Richard Jardine sat down with me to share more about how digital time capsules work, what the future has in store for Skypod, and how Skypod and several donors created opportunities for first responders, healthcare workers, coronavirus patients, and cancer patients to create and send Skypod digital time capsules for free.

Thanks for joining me, Richard. Talk with me about how Skypod’s digital time capsules work. How is the digital information displayed for the recipients? 

Skypod is delivered with a short message and custom cover image chosen by the creator.  The message and image act like a card and wrapping paper for a digital gift box. Until the open date, the recipient can only see the custom cover image for the message, which is set by the creator.

Once the open date is reached, the recipient views the contents of the pod in the same order they were added by the creator. That gives the creator full creative control of both the contents and the experience the recipient will have when they open the pod.

When the recipient opens the pod, they are presented with a personal message written by the creator. Then, the recipient clicks through the files like flipping through a virtual scrapbook with a simple click of the mouse, navigating forward one page at a time in the order they were added by the creator. Once the recipient reaches the end of their Skypod, they have an option to download the contents of the pod. All recipients can access and download Skypods created for them completely free.

Are you able to add creative elements like stickers, audio, slideshows, etc.?   

Yes, and creators can even create unique content directly on the Skypod platform. We love hearing stories about all the ways our users create content for their pods.

Some use sites that specialize in digital book creation, slideshow creation, or movies and then upload those into their pods. We love that. There are many incredible sites that specialize in helping people create digital content, but they can also use our platform to create unique content. One thing that makes our software unique is how flexible we are with being able to work with any type of file no matter where a user creates it. That’s why we often suggest people utilize sites that specialize in creating a piece of content rather than forcing people to use our native content creation platform.

Regardless of where you create your content, Skypod safeguards and encrypts all of the content you add to your time capsule, delivers it to the people you love, and makes it viewable to them on the day and time you choose, up to five years in the future.

What is the purpose of sending digital time capsules from Skypod? How is it beneficial to others?

Our users send Skypods for many reasons. Grandparents record messages to their grandkids years into the future. Military members record birthday and anniversary messages to be delivered when they’re overseas. Patients with terminal illnesses record special messages for family members months and even years into the future. The list goes on.

Have you ever lost someone you loved and wished you could hear from them again? That’s what Skypod does. We give people the ability to hear from their loved ones no matter what the future holds.

We all know that tomorrow isn’t guaranteed. However, with Skypod, we can guarantee your photos, videos, voice, encouraging messages, advice, and wisdom can all be there for the people you love no matter what happens in life.

Essentially, Skypod does for messages and memories what estate planning does with material possessions. This is extremely beneficial to the people who receive Skypods.

Imagine how you would feel knowing you have a birthday message to open every year for the next five years from a loved one you’ve lost.

What happens if the sender passes away before the Skypod is gifted to the recipient? Will it still be delivered?

Great question. When a Skypod is created, we secure and encrypt the contents and deliver the pods to the recipients immediately. But we don’t let them access the contents until the day and time chosen by the sender.

By immediately delivering locked pods to recipients, senders have peace of mind knowing their pod was delivered and the recipients have it in their possession. It also creates a tremendous amount of excitement and anticipation for recipients as they await the day and time they can access the contents of the pod. It’s like having a birthday gift that you can’t open until months or even years into the future. There’s no peeking either. The pod is completely locked until the day and time chosen by the sender.

I know that the pods are able to be sent to multiple recipients, but do you have the option to create a pod by multiple senders who may want to send a collaborative piece? 

Yes, people can create a collaborative piece by recording a group video or Zoom call, creating a collaborative slideshow, or all contributing files for a pod.

We have built our platform for maximum flexibility, so you can upload to a pod any files you create. We designed our software to work well with other platforms rather than against them. You can create videos, audio files, or other documents using whichever platform you prefer, and then use Skypod to encrypt, protect, and deliver your beautiful creations to up to 100 people whenever you choose. 

Why is the deliverable date for a Skypod limited to five years? Do you think you will extend that time so that individuals can send messages to their loved ones further into the future?  

Absolutely. We are updating the technology to be able to increase the timeframe to up to ten years in the near future. 

What future changes, if any, do you see for Skypod?

In addition to expanding the timeframe for Skypods, we are also working on helping organizations use Skypod for custom-use cases. For example, many schools want to create digital time capsules with and for students. We love working with organizations to create custom solutions for their needs.

What was the founders’ inspiration and purpose of Skypod?

My biological father died when I was less than two years old. To this day, I’ve never seen a single photograph of him, and it has always been on my mind. Every time I traveled for work, I’d look out of the plane and think about my own mortality. I always wondered about what my kids would know about me if I passed away early.

Too many people are leaving this earth too soon and, sadly, many are leaving behind small children like my father did. My cofounders, Jason Swing, Majd Elias, Jason Nauman, and I all initially wanted to help parents leave a legacy for their kids if they were to pass away unexpectedly. And we wanted to help children hear and see their parents if their parents passed away when the children were young, like my father did. Thankfully with Skypod, they can. Since then, we’ve been pleasantly surprised by all the other ways people use Skypod. We continue to innovate to help more and more people send messages that matter to the people in their lives who matter most.

To keep up with the latest on what we’re doing, you can stay connected with Skypod on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Be on the lookout for special giveaways by Skypod, too. Our leadership team frequently gives away free Skypod credits to those in need.

For example, Skypod is giving away $3 Million in free Skypod credits to first responders, healthcare workers, coronavirus patients, and people recently diagnosed with cancer, to ensure nobody in the world needs to risk having their memories lost.

First responders, healthcare workers, and coronavirus patients should visit www.skypod.com/together to receive $100 in free Skypod credits. Also, patients who have been recently diagnosed with cancer should visit www.skypod.com/cancer to receive $100 in free Skypod credits, too. No credit card is required. No strings attached.