We're Neurophos.
Our Team
Dr. Tom Driscoll
CTO, Co-founder
Tom is a Technology executive, inventor, and entrepreneur with a passion for leading teams and building solutions. At Neurophos, Tom is helping the team chart their path of TRL maturation and productization. Tom is also currently co-founder, CTO, and board-member of Echodyne Corp, where he is helping bring breakthrough metamaterial-radar sensors to meet commercial and defense needs in the age of autonomy. Previously, Tom was co-founder and Managing Director of the Metamaterials Commercialization Center incubator at Intellectual Ventures, where he and a small team of scientists and engineers realized and matured a technology platform that has underwritten 6 start-up companies to date. Tom holds a Ph.D. in physics from UCSD, and a B.S. in Physics from Harvey Mudd, and an adjunct professor position at Duke University. Tom is the author of over 20 peer-reviewed publications with 3000 citations, and inventor on over 100 patents.
Dr. Patrick T. Bowen
CEO, Co-founder
Patrick is an entrepreneur with a background in physics and metamaterials, with experience spanning both academia and industry. Patrick is a cofounder and CEO of Neurophos, setting the vision for the future of the architecture, but also actively working with the team in research and development, particularly in metamaterials design. Patrick worked as a metamaterials designer and computational physicist for industry for five years while simultaneously pursuing his master’s in Micro-Nano systems at ETH Zurich and PhD in Electrical Engineering at Duke University, under Prof. David Smith. After graduation, Patrick co-founded his first company with Prof. Smith, Metacept, which is a metamaterials commercialization center and consulting firm. Patrick has over 20 publications ranging across topics in radio-frequency metamaterials, effective medium theory, laser physics, elastodynamics, hydrodynamics, and Brillouin scattering.
Dr. Andrew Traverso
Senior Scientist, Co-founder
Andrew, a physicist by training, has over 10 years of experience in both fundamental and applied research in optoelectronics and photonics. At Neurophos, Andrew is guiding the team’s efforts in prototyping, design validation, and research and development. Before Neurophos, he was a postdoctoral fellow in the Center for Metamaterials and Integrated Plasmonics at Duke University, focusing his research on photonic generation and control via plasmonic metasurfaces. He earned his Ph.D. (Physics) in 2016 from Texas A&M University where his research spanned a wide range of topics extending from advanced coherent light generation techniques to developing cutting edge methods in Brillouin microscopy. Andrew is an author on over 20 peer-reviewed publications and holds both a B.S. in Physics and a B.A. in Classical Studies from Rice University.
Donovan Popps
VP of Engineering
Donovan Popps boasts 30 years of experience in design, management, and field operations within the semiconductor industry. His career commenced at Motorola, focusing on SRAM circuit design and leading a multimedia application SoC circuit design team. Transitioning to start-ups, he contributed to a scalable DSP Design IP company, developing their inaugural silicon product. In 2002, he joined Denali, spearheading the creation of high-performance Design IP DDR Memory Controllers with a dedicated team. His tenure at Denali was marked by innovations in design, empowering customers through the Field Applications group, heading the design team, and ultimately directing the R&D division. Under his guidance, the group evolved from negative margin to a profitable entity, culminating in acquisition by Cadence. In 2014, Popps moved to Ambiq, ascending to Vice President of Engineering and leading the Engineering group. After eight years, he shifted to Luminous Computing, taking on a pivotal role in developing a revolutionary AI inferencing system. Popps holds an MSEE, multiple semiconductor design patents, and a proven record of fostering engineering excellence across various companies, guiding them from nascent stages to substantial growth.
Dr. Philip Sullivan
Senior Optical Engineer
Philip, an expert in advanced materials and optics with a Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry/Nanotechnology, joins us with a rich background in entrepreneurship and academia. Dr. Sullivan has led research groups at major Universities and technology incubators, launched start-up companies, and shaped Intellectual property and business strategy. Dr. Sullivan’s pioneering work (in academia and at Intellectual Ventures), toward the development of organic tuneable dielectric materials and their integration into silicon photonics and metamaterials, has contributed to the formation of several companies (e.g., Kymeta, in collaboration with Dr. Nathan Kundtz). Phil's interdisciplinary expertise is a significant addition to our team's pursuit of pioneering optical compute technologies.
Michelle Truong
Executive Assistant
Michelle Truong is a dynamic force in operations and administration at Neurophos with a unique background in military intelligence and investigations. Outside of her investigative work, Michelle has refined her project management and problem-solving expertise in a variety of administrative roles, and most recently as a Senior Operations manager at Poolin. Michelle's strategic approach and adept communication stems from her experience in fast-paced high stakes environments. Her effectiveness is validated by Army Commendation and Achievement Medals, highlighting her dedication to excellence.
Alexander M. Hayes
Head of Business Development
Alexander is an experienced serial entrepreneur, and co-founder of Metacept Inc, and Astrobeam Inc. His ventures range from accelerated neural rendering (neural radiance fields), predictive control, in-line metrology for high-speed quality control of medical products, all the way to B2C platforms, advancing external knowledge retrieval for LLMs, or metamaterial intersatellite laser communication, and remote wireless power.
Advisors
Matt Traverso
Technical Advisor
Matt Traverso is a Distinguished Engineer for Marvell Technology with a focus on next generation optical interconnect solutions based on silicon photonics. He has led the development of multiple high volume optical module products at 100Gbps and beyond. Matt has been active in the development and definition of optical communications standards and optical form factors since 2000 including as the original editor of the CFP MSA (Multi-Source Agreement). He has dozens of journal publications and has over 30 patents awarded and pending. He graduated from Stanford University in Materials Science & Engineering.
Igor Muskatblit
Technical Advisor
Igor Muskatblit is an accomplished hardware engineer with extensive experience within startup ventures and corporate giants. After graduating with a Bachelors in Computer Engineering from the University of Toronto in 1995, Igor spent the first seven years of his engineering career at startups in Canada. He worked for Gametronics, Sicon Video, and co-founded his own startup ISES. Igor would continue on to leading engineering roles for ATI Technologies, Harris Corporation, and AMD. In 2013, Igor relocated to the San Francisco Bay Area and spent several years working on Microsoft hardware. Since leaving Microsoft, Igor has spent the last eight years building ultra low latency trading systems on the edge for the financial industry. Igor’s passion and expertise has led him to becoming a Silicon Catalyst Angel and advisor, where he directly impacts emerging companies' success in the semiconductor space.
Ty Garibay
Technical Advisor
Ty Garibay, a seasoned semiconductor industry expert, currently leads as President at Condor Computing, where he specializes in SoC, microprocessor, and digital IP design. His role at Condor is complemented by his advisory work at Femtosense and his past leadership positions at Mythic and Arteris IP. Ty's significant contributions at Intel PSG and Texas Instruments as a senior director in IC engineering have solidified his status as a leader in complex tech projects.
A respected figure in the tech community, Ty has chaired the Design Automation Conference, demonstrating his dedication to the field. His extensive array of publications and patents showcases his impact on the semiconductor industry. Ty's blend of technical expertise and leadership makes him a key influencer in the sector.
Dr. David R. Smith
Scientific Advisor
David is a globally recognized researcher and pioneer in the field of metamaterials. As the James B. Duke Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Duke University, Smith has made significant contributions to the development of artificial materials that can manipulate electromagnetic waves in novel ways. His work has laid the foundation for advancements in various applications, including imaging systems, communications, and radar technology. Smith's research team was the first to construct a metamaterial with a negative index of refraction, a groundbreaking discovery that has inspired further innovation in both academia and industry. His expertise in this specialized area of study continues to shape the future of technology.
Sander Arts
Marketing & PR Advisor
Sander’s career started in the Netherlands where he joined Royal Philips in the year 2000. Very quickly, he was catapulted into an executive position becoming one of the youngest executives in Royal Philips and NXP semiconductors
In 2010, he moved to Silicon Valley where he worked for a variety of American technology companies; mostly in the hardware and AI/ML space, where he has supported a variety of value creation exits. He was the head of marketing for Atmel Corp.
Since 2016, Sander has redefined marketing and positioning strategies for over 35 clients, including Syntiant, Groq, Arduino, Merck, DuPont, Marvell Technology Group, SiFive, and Maxim Integrated. Aside from this, Sander is a respected author and lecturer at universities and MBA programs globally.
Board of Directors
Dr. Chris Alliegro
Board of Directors
Founder and Managing Partner at MetaVC Partners, Chris has a diverse and accomplished career spanning over three decades in scientific, corporate, and private equity positions. Prior to founding MetaVC Partners, Chris was Managing Director of the Invention Development Fund and the Invention Science Funds at Intellectual Ventures. He was a founding member of the Microsoft team that launched MSN, where he ran the engineering, operations, and networking teams for MSN’s global data centers. Prior to joining Microsoft, Chris was a Member of Technical Staff at Bell Labs. Chris earned his PhD and was a postdoctoral fellow in elementary particle physics at Yale University. In his spare time, Chris races competitively as a driver with Rotek Racing.
Dr. Nathan Kundtz
Board of Directors
Nathan is an innovator and entrepreneur known for his work in the field of satellite communications and metamaterials. As the founder and former CEO of Kymeta Corporation, he played a vital role in developing advanced satellite antenna technology that leverages the principles of metamaterials. His expertise in electromagnetic theory and computational physics has led to revolutionary advancements in lightweight, flat-panel antennas, bridging the gap between mobile users and satellite networks. With a background that includes research at Intellectual Ventures and a Ph.D. in Physics from Duke University, Dr. Kundtz's contributions continue to influence the future of connectivity and communication technologies.
Investors/Partners
