SenseICs Anchors Semiconductor Ecosystem in Ohio
Inventing integrated circuitry for mission critical applications at Rev1 Labs
It’s amazing how many times serendipity plays a role in entrepreneurship. Take the connection of SenseICs Co-founders Drs. Ramy Tantawy and Shane Smith, two scientists who met in a research group at The Ohio State University (OSU) and went on to start up a ground-breaking semiconductor company headquartered in Rev1 Labs.
SenseICs designs and invents advanced micro-components and integrated circuitry for applications driving the world’s most critical applications in defense, space exploration, and commercial markets. Founded in 2017, SenseICs specializes in advanced imaging, communications, trusted microelectronics, and radiation-hardened applications. The company is under contract with and developing IP for NASA and multiple federal labs.
Commercializing OSU IP in Our Own Backyard
Working together at OSU—Tantawy, who was earning his PhD in electrical and computer engineering, and Smith, a nationally recognized expert in radiation-hardened integrated circuit research in the Electroscience Lab and Department of Physics, observed a phenomenon that troubled them.
“We found that everything we were doing in chip design was going to someone outside of Ohio to build on and take advantage of,” said Tantawy. “There were people in other states working on our technologies and in our areas of expertise—making projects and new investments with licenses from here.”
They saw a need and an opportunity and decided to build a Midwest semiconductor company to commercialize homegrown designs and intellectual property (IP) licensed from research institutions in the state of Ohio.
SenseICs is “fabless”
SenseICs is a semiconductor company that designs, markets, and sells a range of application-specific microchips. The company is “fabless,” which means that instead of producing (fabricating) product, SenseICs outsources semiconductor production to highly specialized and sophisticated manufacturers.
“We don’t have to design to the specifications of any one factory,” Tantawy said. “We can concentrate on developing products without diluting our focus and capital. We can allow innovation to take us where it will.”
SenseICs is a Talent Magnet for Ohio’s Developing Engineers
Achieving innovation in semiconductors requires certain types of engineers who must build experience highly specialized areas of microelectronics and integrated circuit design.
“This is the biggest challenge,” said Tantawy. “From the beginning, we had to think about finding the right people and giving them the right experience. If an undergraduate engineering student wants to work in chip design, they really must consider that career path early on to line up enough elective coursework and skills.”
SenseICs currently employs more than a dozen people plus six interns. Ten of the company’s full-time engineers are pursuing their master’s or PhD degrees part-time in highly specialized areas of microelectronics. Ten of the company’s full-time engineers began with SenseICs as interns.
SenseICs is at the start of a microelectronics ecosystem that hasn’t existed before in the Midwest.
“We could have made this a very successful design services business,” Tantawy said, “but we want to advance the technology and push the envelope of IP developed here with a product-focused business. That’s why we joined the Customer to Capital accelerator—to validate our product market fit.”
