Hyperspectral imaging startup raises $7.5M

Business news | April 14, 2016

Unispectal Ltd. (Ramat Gan, Israel) a company founded this year to commercialize image sensor technology developed at Tel Aviv University has raised $7.5 million in Series A funding.

By Jean-Pierre Joosting

耶路撒冷Venture Partners (JVP)支持有限公司mpany along with Robert Bosch Venture Capital (RBVC), Samsung Catalyst Fund and The Tel Aviv University Technology Innovation Momentum Fund. This brings the money raised by the copany to date to $8 million. The latest round of funding will be used to hire additional staff and expedite product development.

The company is developing a hyperspectral image sensor that can not only be used for spectrometric analysis of materials such as food stuffs but can also capture images in low-light. The sensor is applicable to a wide range of applications such as wearables, digital health, medical imaging, Internet of Things, industrial and agricultural applications.

The sensor can distinguish material properties in solids, liquids and gases, according to investor JVP, and the company is reported to already be in negotiations with smartphone manufacturers for the inclusion of its sensor on next-generation phones.

“The mobile market today is ripe for a new killer application changing the way we understand images and identify materials and objects,” said Kobi Rozengarten, managing partner at JVP, in a statement. “Unispectral is developing a game-changing technology with the potential to re-envision the mobile market.”