ROCHESTER, N.Y.—A California-based company has been named the winner of the seventh round of Luminate’s Startup Accelerator Program.
Nixlab, an international optical design firm from Silicon Valley, won the “Company of the Year” award at the 2024 Luminate Finals held Thursday at the Theater in Innovation Square, earning $1 million from New York State. I decided to receive a dollar investment.
The organization plans to use the funds to open an office in Rochester.
“Rochester is the world center for optics and photonics,” said Andri Mahendra, founder and CEO of Nicslab. “Rochester aligns with our mission. It’s the right place and the right time. We already ship to 15 countries.”
Thursday’s event marked the completion of the seventh year of Luminate’s accelerator program, with five other companies receiving funding.
Since its founding in 2017, Luminate has invested more than $18 million in more than 70 startups in the optics, photonics, and imaging (OPI) industry.
“Luminate has helped us tremendously, not just with business operations,” Mahendra said. “(They) will help accelerate the work needed for our next expansion and help us develop a more solid team that can support development.”
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