Built in a Cornish Garage: The Smart Lamp That Shows the Tide at Your Favourite Beach

Built in a Garage, Backed by Data

A Cornish inventor from Portreath is hoping to ride a wave of success with a new product that merges smart tech with a love of the sea.

Alex Tweed has developed Tide.lamp, a smart lamp that shows the position of the tide at your favourite beach using real-time ocean data. Unlike a traditional tide clock, it doesn’t need manual calibration. “You simply choose a beach on the app and the lamp does the rest,” said Alex.

The invention began life in Alex’s garage in 2017 as a way for his family to check the tide before grabbing their paddleboards. Now, with support from Plymouth University’s STRIDE programme and Cornwall’s Good Growth Fund, it’s grown into a fully-fledged product.

Over 5,000 Beaches – and Growing

The Tide.lamp works for more than 5,000 coastal locations worldwide, including 600 in the UK – and more are added every week.

Designed with sustainability in mind, the lamp uses responsibly sourced wood and recycled plastics. Tidelight, the company behind it, also supports repairs beyond the warranty period by making spare parts available to extend the product’s life.

Made in Cornwall, Ready for the World

After seven years of prototyping and refinement, Tide.lamp is now ready for commercial production. By partnering with local manufacturers like Sellectronics and working with app developers at HiYield, Alex has kept the production rooted in Cornwall.

“Our goal is to create something that’s not only attractive and serves a useful purpose at a glance, but also improves people’s wellbeing and helps them to feel connected to the coast,” he said.

Crowdfunding Momentum

To fund manufacturing, Tidelight launched a Kickstarter campaign that’s already proving popular. “Within six hours of launching Tide.lamp on the Kickstarter platform we’d reached 50% of our funding, and are now approaching 85% with 29 days remaining,” said Alex. “The first Tide.lamps will go into production just as soon as it finishes and we can see how big the demand is for them. It’s looking very promising.”

Early Praise from Cornwall’s Design Scene

Tidelight’s innovation has already caught the attention of Cornwall’s design and hospitality sectors:

“Thank you for showcasing your beautiful lights. We believe our guests will thoroughly enjoy the atmospheric ambience and watching the tide changes throughout the day and evening.” – Carpuan, The Collection

“We were impressed with the design and quality of the product. These would make a fantastic addition to our high-end camper van conversions.” – ChilliJamVans

“I would personally love to have one of these units for my autistic son. The constantly changing light would captivate him and help him feel calm and relaxed.” – Sellectronics Ltd.

To learn more, or order through the Kickstarter campaign, click here to visit Kickstarter or the Tide Light website.