Swave Photonics, QART Medical, and PhosPrint win big at 2023 SPIE Startup Challenge
2.2.2023 00:02:00 EET | Business Wire | Press release
Yesterday, at a ceremony during SPIE Photonics West, Swave Photonics – with their Holographic eXtended Reality chips based on proprietary diffractive photonics technology – was announced the winner of the $10,000 top prize at the 13th annual SPIE Startup Challenge.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230201005834/en/
Jenoptik’s Ralf Kuschnereit, far left, Swave Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer Theo Marescaux, Swave CEO Mike Noonen, and 2023 SPIE Vice President Peter de Groot. Credit: Joey Cobbs.
QART Medical, utilizing biophotonics and data for 3D analysis of sperm cells during IVF, received $5,000 for second place. PhosPrint came in third, winning $2,500, with their novel bioprinting technology that repairs in vivo human tissue during surgery. All cash prizes are provided by SPIE Startup Challenge Founding Partner Jenoptik.
The SPIE Startup Challenge, a pitch competition held annually by SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics, showcases new businesses, products, and technologies that address critical needs by utilizing photonics in the areas of healthcare and deep tech. This year’s finalists included innovations in medical diagnostics, medical imaging, food safety, and display technology.
“It’s a privilege just to present to a such distinguished audience,” says Swave Photonics CEO Mike Noonen. “Participating at the Startup Challenge was an award in itself, but to actually win first-place recognition, well, our team is very excited. We really want to thank the sponsors and SPIE and Photonics West for the opportunity.”
“It's very nice to get the acknowledgement,” notes QART Medical CEO and Co-Founder Alon Shalev. “The judges were very supportive, and they gave us good insights yesterday in the preparation session. I think SPIE Photonics West is a wonderful, wonderful event, and a great opportunity to see and meet people. Being acknowledged is always nice, and this feels like a real achievement.”
“It was a great experience for me,” adds Chief Technology Officer and Co-Founder of PhosPrint Ioanna Zergioti. “It was exciting for us to have the opportunity to present our startup at the SPIE Startup Challenge. It was especially great to work with the judges, and to get feedback from senior investors in the field.”
The 2023 SPIE Startup Challenge was supported by Founding Partner Jenoptik; Lead Sponsors Edmund Optics, Hamamatsu, MKS Instruments, and Thorlabs; and Supporting Sponsors NextCorps Luminate and Photonics Media. The competition judges who vetted the applicants for their business models, financial cases, and competitive advantages included Jenoptik’s Kristin Holzhey, MKS Instruments’ Marc D. Himel, Edmund Optics' Agnes Hübscher, NextCorps Luminate’s Sujatha Ramanujan, Hamamatsu Ventures’ Richard Oberreiter, and Thorlabs’ Garrett Cole.
Light-based technologies enable developments in a proliferating number of areas, from healthcare and high-speed communications to quantum computing, AR/VR/MR, and self-driving vehicles. The SPIE Startup Challenge is an annual entrepreneurial pitch competition for new businesses that utilize optics and photonics to create innovative products, applications, and technologies. Startup Challenge winners that have gone on to wider commercial success include Cellino Biotech, Double Helix Optics, PhotoniCare, C. Light Technologies, Circle Optics, and In A Blink.
About SPIE
SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics, brings engineers, scientists, students, and business professionals together to advance light-based science and technology. The Society, founded in 1955, connects and engages with our global constituency through industry-leading conferences and exhibitions; publications of conference proceedings, books, and journals in the SPIE Digital Library; and career-building opportunities. Over the past five years, SPIE has contributed more than $22 million to the international optics community through our advocacy and support, including scholarships, educational resources, travel grants, endowed gifts, and public-policy development. www.spie.org.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230201005834/en/
Contact information
Daneet Steffens
Public Relations Manager
daneets@spie.org
+1 360 685 5478
@SPIEtweets
About Business Wire
For more than 50 years, Business Wire has been the global leader in press release distribution and regulatory disclosure.
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Multi-Color Corporation Initiates Implementation of Restructuring Agreement29.1.2026 08:58:00 EET | Press release
Multi-Color Corporation (“MCC” or the “Company”), a global leader in prime label solutions, today announced that to implement the previously announced restructuring support agreement (the “RSA”), the Company has commenced its prepackaged Chapter 11 filing in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey (“the Court”). MCC announced on January 27 it had entered into the RSA with holders of approximately 72% in amount of MCC’s secured first lien debt and its equity sponsor, CD&R, on the terms of a comprehensive financial restructuring. The transactions contemplated by the RSA will significantly deleverage MCC’s balance sheet, reducing its net debt load from approximately $5.9 billion to approximately $2.0 billion. The Company’s annualized cash interest will also be reduced from approximately $475 million to $140 million in 2026, a reduction of over $330 million, with long-term debt maturities extended to 2033 following consummation of the restructuring transactions. A
Takeda Reports Third-Quarter FY2025 Results: Updates Full Year Outlook to Reflect VYVANSE ® Generics Impact, OPEX Discipline and FX Tailwind; Progressing Toward Three Transformative Launches Ahead29.1.2026 08:37:00 EET | Press release
Takeda (TOKYO:4502/NYSE:TAK) today announced earnings results for the third quarter of fiscal year 2025 (nine months ended December 31, 2025). The gap between incremental Growth & Launch Products revenue and VYVANSE erosion is narrowing, and operational efficiencies drove year-on-year reductions in operating expenses, including R&D. The company raised its full-year forecasts based on cost discipline and FX tailwind, while its Revenue Management Guidance has been updated primarily due to the impact of VYVANSE generics. Takeda is positioned for long-term growth and has multiple late-stage programs with multibillion-dollar peak revenue potential. Following the positive readouts from Phase 3 studies in 2025, the company has submitted New Drug Applications (NDAs) for oveporexton and rusfertide and is on track to file an NDA for zasocitinib. Each of these programs, which Takeda expects to launch within the next 18 months, has the potential to redefine standards of care, transform patient liv
Ubitus Partners with Maizuru City, Kyoto to Launch AI Data Center Project, Advancing the Deployment of a Top-Tier AI GPU Center in Japan29.1.2026 08:00:00 EET | Press release
Ubitus K.K. (Headquarters: Shinjuku, Tokyo; Representative Director & CEO: Wesley Kuo), a global leader in cloud streaming and AI solutions, today announced that it will hold a land signing ceremony and press conference with Maizuru City, Kyoto Prefecture, on January 29, 2026. At the event, Ubitus will officially unveil its comprehensive plan to construct an AI Data Center in Maizuru City, marking the company’s transition into the physical construction phase of its initiative to build a top-tier AI GPU center in Japan. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260128944842/en/ Ubitus will launch its Maizuru City AI Data Center project on January 29, marking the first step toward building a top-tier AI GPU center in Japan. Powered by NVIDIA Blackwell GPUs and NeoCloud, the project strengthens Japan’s AI infrastructure and regional development. This land agreement represents the first major milestone following Ubitus’ sel
Galderma Unveils ‘Wake Up To Restylane’, Underscoring Restylane as the Ideal Hyaluronic Acid Treatment for Always-On Natural Beauty29.1.2026 08:00:00 EET | Press release
Galderma (SIX: GALD), the pure-play dermatology category leader, has launched ‘Wake Up To Restylane’, a global campaign that showcases Restylane as an everyday beauty ally. Aligned with the growing desire for effortless, authentic results that restore facial balance and improve skin quality, the campaign highlights Restylane’s unique ability to deliver personalized results that move naturally with expressions to help people look and feel good.1,6,12-18 This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260128829353/en/ The launch was unveiled at the IMCAS World Congress 2026 in Paris, where Galderma also presented new clinical data reinforcing Restylane’s efficacy across key facial areas such as the chin, jawline, temples, as well as the décolletage, underscoring its unique position as the only HA portfolio offering a variety of formulations for tailored outcomes.1,8-11 “What's compelling about ‘Wake Up To Restylane’ is its focu
Lattice to Showcase Advanced Edge AI Solutions at the FPGA-forum 202628.1.2026 23:00:00 EET | Press release
Lattice Semiconductor (NASDAQ: LSCC), the low power programmable leader, today announced its exhibition plan for the upcoming FPGA-forum 2026 taking place February 11 – 12, 2026 in Trondheim, Norway. As part of the event, Lattice Corporate Vice President of Software Solutions and Applications Engineering Eleena Ong will deliver a keynote presentation exploring how rapidly maturing AI technologies can turn FPGA platforms into innovation canvases for a much broader range of developers, sparking new application possibilities. Lattice will also deliver a technical presentation and host a demo showcase focused on how its low power FPGA solutions are advancing connectivity and edge AI applications. Who: Lattice Semiconductor What / When (GMT+1): Lattice Demo Showcase (Table #3), Feb 11-12 Keynote Feb. 11, 9:30 a.m. “Unlocking the Next Wave of FPGA Innovators with Generative and Agentic AI” Technical Presentation Feb. 12, 10 a.m. “Smaller. Cooler. Smarter: Lattice FPGAs’ Path to Uncompromised
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom