Echodyne Spins Out from Intellectual Ventures

Our first endeavor was spinning out Kymeta in 2012, a company that develops Metamaterials Surface Antenna Technology (MSA-T), to enable satellite connected broadband Internet on the go, anywhere in the world. This was followed in 2013 by our spin-out Evolv, which commercializes metamaterials-based imaging and detection technology for use in airports and other high-risk facilities. On the heels of Evolv, we also established the Metamaterials Commercialization Center (MCC), which is a team of engineers, physicists, and scientists dedicated to furthering the development and commercial readiness of our metamaterials inventions.

To date, the MCC has been primarily focused on exploring nearer-term applications of metamaterials technology to address an identifiable customer need. I’m very proud of all that we’ve accomplished in just a few short years and am pleased to announce that today, we’ve added another chapter to our story with the launch of IV’s third metamaterials spin-out and fourth overall, Echodyne. 

Led by co-founders Eben Frankenberg (CEO) and Tom Driscoll (CTO), two former IV colleagues, Echodyne will bring metamaterials-based radar systems to market. The company recently closed an initial $15 million funding round led by Bill Gates and Madrona Venture Group, with participation from Vulcan Capital, Lux Capital, The Kresge Foundation, and others.

We see tremendous promise around metamaterials and in addition to the three companies we’ve already spun-out, are continuing to work closely with our partners at Duke University, University of California at San Diego, and Imperial College to explore further the great potential of this technology. Please continue to follow us on this very exciting journey.

You can learn more about IV’s spin-outs here.