In short
Potenco, a small engineering company, is the official supplier of OLPC generators. The One Laptop Per Child (OLPC) project aims to build a low-cost laptop dedicated to children of emerging countries.
Hand generator
Among other projects dedicated to developing countries, the company has developed an eponymous generator designed to be robust, easy to use, hand generator.
Users produce energy by simply pulling a cord. For one minute of exercise, the generator outputs electric power for up to several hours, and can feed mobile phones, PDAs?, lighting products, digital cameras, etc. The Potenco generator is said to deliver five times more power than regular cranks, and can be pulled five times longer before the user senses fatigue.
The company
Potenco is formed by Colin Bulthaup, Ray Rahman, Saul Griffith, and Corwin Hardham. Colin Bulthaup is also a founder partner of Squid Labs, an engineer bureau that creates chips, electronics, robotics, materials, embedded systems, manufacturing processes as well as recently launching Instructables. Most recently Colin was recognized by Technology Review Magazine as one of the top innovators under the age of 35.