Seattle Startup Week is now well underway and the city is buzzing with entrepreneurial energy. What better time to spotlight some local startups that are hitting it big? Earlier this week, we introduced you to to two successful virtual reality startups, Doghead Simulations and ensoVerse, and then video company Strange Loop Games. Today we’re celebrating two companies that are making names for themselves in the field of IoT (Internet of Things): Smashing Ideas and Pebblebee.

“Technological entrepreneurship is solving societal crises,” Brian Burke, CEO at Smashing Ideas, said.

The digital agency has an increasingly significant presence in healthcare, a field that Burke says allows tech innovators to act on their dreams on a scale they haven’t been able to do before.

“The advancement of digital health is starting to have a direct correlation to augmenting physical and mental-health treatments,” he said. “It increases the ease of care between patient/user and health-supported products, and empowers, educates, and supports users to take control of their health via a variety of technology solutions.”

The agency’s integration into healthcare is the result of many years of hard work and evolution. As far as digital agencies go, Smashing Ideas is historic.

“[It] was founded in 1996…at a time when Seattle was a hotbed of creativity – from the renowned music scene to architecture and burgeoning technology corporations,” Burke said. “Smashing remains deeply rooted in the city of Seattle, where creativity and technology go hand-in-hand.”

Pebblebee, on the other hand, is just four years old. The hardware engineering company, which makes customized beacon tracking solutions, was founded in 2012 as a necessary solution to co-founder Nick Pearson-Frank’s toddler’s propensity for hiding things.

“We save people time,” said Daniel Daoura, Pebblebee’s other co-founder.

For him, this is the most exciting part of the job.

“Adding value to people’s lives by saving them time through our technology so they can focus on more important things is a very rewarding experience,” he said. “You learn something new about your product and customers every day. You adjust and you apply and before you know it, you have a new product on the market.”

This month, Pebblebee is releasing a product called the Finder. The device can locate your valuables at all times via the Pebblebee app, and also helps you find your phone when you press its button.

“It’s going to be a hit,” Doura said.

According to both Doura and Burke, budding entrepreneurs looking to create hit products like Pebblebee’s and Smashing Ideas’ should bear one important thing in mind: culture matters.

“Recruit the right people for your business to help you reach your vision. Build a culture that shares your values,” Doura said. “Appreciate your team, work hard with high integrity, and be passionate about your work.”

Burke echoed his sentiments.

“Culture matters and the best work is done when a company’s values are clear and shared to the core,” he said.

Follow Smashing Ideas on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Vimeo, and follow Pebblebee on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.