Butterfly Network, a company out to democratize healthcare by making medical imaging universally accessible and affordable, has won the Ultrasonic Transducers Product Showdown at MEMS and Sensors Executive Congress (MSEC 2020), held last week for the first time in virtual format. Butterfly iQ, the winning product, is a connected, easy-to-use handheld whole-body ultrasound system that the company says is 10 times less expensive than traditional ultrasound medical imaging systems. The award was based on a poll of MSEC attendees.
“MSEC 2020 underscored cutting-edge innovation that promises to help tackle shared challenges,” said Tim Brosnihan, executive director for SEMI-MSIG. “In the midst of an international pandemic, the product finalists, emerging leaders and MSIG Hall of Fame inductees recognized at MSEC 2020 all reflect forward-looking MEMS and sensors solutions that take aim at overcoming problems confronting societies around the world.”
TDK-Chirp Microsystems and Ultrasense Systems were the other Ultrasonic Transducers Product Showdown finalists. TDK-Chirp Microsystems was recognized for its wearable that uses ultrasonic sensing to determine whether people are safely separated in the workplace and public places. Ultrasense Systems ranked among MSEC 2020 innovation elites for its TouchPoint technology, which can provide virtually any surface with touch controls, regardless of thickness or material.
The debut of the Emerging Leaders Award – recognizing three fast-rising innovators under the age of 40 – and the announcement of three new inductees to the MEMS and Sensors Industry Group (MSIG) Hall of Fame also highlighted MSEC 2020.
Emerging Leaders Award Honorees
Simon Chaput, founder and president of Boréas Technologies
Jean-Michel Chouinard, group manager at Teledyne DALSA
Houri Johari, senior director of MEMS technology development at TDK InvenSense
MSIG Hall of Fame Inductees
Evgeni Gousev, senior director at Qualcomm Technologies
Allyson Hartzell, principal architect for Quality and Reliability at Philips
Karen Lightman, executive director for Metro 21 at Carnegie Mellon University
Presented annually by SEMI at MSEC, the awards recognize innovative new products and industry leaders that have made a significant impact in the MEMS and sensors industry.
MSEC 2021 will take place October 11-13, 2021, at Coronado Island Marriott Resort & Spa in Coronado, California. For more information on MSEC 2021 and other SEMI-MSIG events and programs, please follow @MEMSgroup on Twitter, visit MSIG at SEMI and, subscribe to SEMI’s weekly newsletter SEMI Global Update.