Masaru Ibuka created the very first product for the company that would eventually become Sony in 1946, and it was nothing more than a wooden bucket lined with rudimentary aluminum electrodes designed to cook rice.

A closer look

Masaru Ibuka created the very first product for the company that would eventually become Sony in 1946, and it was nothing more than a wooden bucket lined with rudimentary aluminum electrodes designed to cook rice. The device was an absolute commercial disaster because the unregulated electric current either left the rice completely raw or burned it into an inedible, smoldering paste depending on the water level. Before they revolutionized portable audio with the Walkman or dominated global gaming with the PlayStation console, the greatest engineering minds in Japan were struggling to boil a simple carbohydrate without starting a fire. It is deeply inspiring to know that one of the most prestigious consumer electronics brands in history began its legacy by manufacturing a lethal culinary fire hazard that nobody wanted to buy