Crowdsourcing has many benefits, in fact too many to go into in this article, and can be 
used for anything from testing out new ideas for products and services, to obtaining ideas for the design of innovative technology solutions, to fundraising. Market knowledge and ideas can be collated much more cost-effectively and quickly than traditional methods.
Below, we take a look at our three favourite crowdsourcing stories:
1: Nasa wanted to design an app that would aid astronauts to combat bone density and muscle loss associated with working for extended periods in space, by making it easier for them to track and record their food intake.
According to a recent news article, Appirio called upon approximately 600k programmers and designers to assist in the creation of their Nasa ISS Food Intake Tracer (FIT). By offering incentives and prizes at various stage of the project, they were able to combine the best of the ideas from the brightest technology experts.
2: American Heart Association used crowdfunding to identify the most innovative technologies in the field of cardiovascular health. Their aim to reduce the number of heart disease related deaths by 20%, by 2020. Which will ultimately benefit the world over.
3: Okay, so we might be showing our sentimental side, but it is the month of Valentines. We were struck by a recent story about how crowdsourcing enabled a 10 year old boy, suffering from the Asperger’s to make 1.4 million online friends on Facebook. The young lad, who has had difficulty making school friends, is often very isolated. And, whilst we can all agree that online friends are no substitute for the love and support of family, it is great to see so many people come together to show support, during this impressionable period of his life.