Even though he is an artiste, it has not stopped him from unleashing his entrepreneurial and technological skills. Will.i.am is not a stranger to technology. Recently at the Salesforce Dreamforce conference in Moscone Centre, California, USA, he added one more thing to his portfolio: the Puls, a sleek minimalist wrist-worn device. The device stores music; it has a voice navigator named ‘Aneeda’, which is powered by the speech-tech company, Nuance; and makes phone calls without being paired with a smart phone.
Two years in the making, the Puls smart watch boasts an array of apps and GPS. The device includes a SIM card reader next to the battery, which is fitted into the wide wristband, to make phone calls possible. A curved touch screen is also built into the cuff design.
For those who know the musician cum entrepreneur very well, this is not his first foray into manufacturing a wearable device. Last year, his company, i.am+, launched the foto.sosho, an iPhone case worn around the neck that costs $475 (N78,400).
The accessory essentially turns an iPhone into a fancier camera, with things like a keyboard, interchangeable lenses, built-in flash and photo editing application. Will.i.am has also talked about other connected-wearables his company makes, like shoes, bags and jackets.
By this, he joins the likes of technology giants, Apple and Motorola, who have launched wearables to appeal to the fashion-conscious, rather than the stereotypical tech geek.
He said, “Puls represents my passion for, and my mission to marry design and advanced technology – to create a new breed of wearable device that leapfrogs what is currently on the market.”
Will.i.am’s profile
He was christened William Adams when he was born March 15, 1975, but most people know him by his stage name, Will.i.am, (pronounced Will I Am). He is an American rapper, songwriter, entrepreneur, actor, DJ, record producer and philanthropist.
He was a founding member of the hip hop/pop band, The Black Eyed Peas, with whom he received seven Grammy Awards, eight American Music Awards, a Billboard Music Award, a Teen Choice Award, two MTV Video Music Awards and three World Music Awards.
When Dr. Dre sold Beats to Apple in August, he was not the only one who smiled to the bank as Will.i.am also has a stake in the headphones manufacturing company.
In January 2011, Intel Corp. named Will.i.am as Director of Creative Innovation, with input in developing smart phones, tablets and laptops. In January 2012, he appeared on the BBC TV series, “Top Gear”, and there he revealed he would be starting his own car company called, IAMAUTO.
Will.i.am has made history by being the first artiste to stream a song from the surface of Mars on August 28, 2012. The event took place at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. The song was titled, “Reaching for the Stars.”
Net worth and expensive cars
Will.i.am has reached the stars. He is reportedly worth $75m (N12.4bn) and is enjoying his money. He drives a $500,000 (N82.5m) McLaren MP4-12C. With its flamboyant gull wing doors, the car comes with a powerful twin turbocharged V8 engine capable of thrusting out nearly 600 bhp of raw power.
Will.i.am also owns a Bentley Continental GT and an all-electric car, the Tesla Roadster.
A big fanatic when it comes to cars, Will.i.am is also the owner of a customised 1959 Chevrolet Corvette, a $160,000 (N26.4m) Cadillac Escalade and a $700,000 (N115.5m) silver white DeLorean DMC-12.
He also drives a highly customised version of a 1958 Volkswagen Beetle car. The actor has extensively modified the vintage Beetle to suit his tastes and fitted it with an aluminium interior, bucket seats and door panels. All the alterations were carried out by the automobile modelling company, West Coast Customs, with the aim of turning the Beetle into a car suitable for high speed driving. The car costs $900,000 (N148.5m).
Will.i.am lives in a four-bedroom, three-bath mansion in Los Angeles, which is estimated to cost over $2.75m (N453.8m). He owns a state-of-the-art recording studio at Los Feliz, Los Angeles.
According to an interview with the British tabloid, The Sun, Will.i.am disclosed that he was suffering from tinnitus, a disorder which is common among musicians who have been exposed to loud music for prolonged periods of time. In April 2013, he stated that he had attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
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