Entrepreneur and engineer Yusuf Haque is Co-founder, Executive Vice President of Engineering, and Chief Technology Officer of Exo Imaging.
Like bioengineer Tamer Mohamed, Haque uses his background in business and engineering to progress the medical industry with self-designed technology.
Exo Imaging’s Series C investment round raised $220 million. This latest funding brings the total valuation of the company to over $320 million since its foundation in 2015.
Yusuf Haque advances medical care through new inventions
Haque co-holds thirty-five United States patents in medical devices and semiconductors. He has additionally designed over thirty commercially used integrated circuit products.
Before Exo Imaging, Haque dedicated five years to SliceX/Crest Semiconductors as President and CEO. The dental technology company develops digital x-ray imagers. Since 2012 he has also held the position of CEO at Cinnabar Semiconductors.
For over two decades Haque was Managing Director and General Manager at medical technology company Maxim Integrated Products. While there, he created product lines for medical tools of all kinds. He also developed advancements in digital x-ray imaging, blood glucose analysis, and even self-parking car applications using chips he designed himself.
An experienced salesman and businessman, Haque serves as an advisor to fellow entrepreneurs. He has also participated with the professional technical organization IEEE on Technical Program Committees for twenty years.
Yusuf Haque democratizes ultrasound technology
Haque holds an M.B.A. from the Santa Clara University. He then earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Carleton University.
After college, the engineer worked for the computer hardware and enterprise kiosk company American Microsystems as Section Manager for seven years. Furthermore, Haque has taught graduate level courses at his alma mater Santa Clara University as Adjunct Lecturer for the past thirty-eight years.
With Exo Imaging, Haque used his expertise in chip technology to develop handheld ultrasound devices. Traditional ultrasound machines cost at least $40,000. Meanwhile the price of high-end models can soar up to $250,000. Instead, Exo’s approach pairs medical imaging with artificial intelligence and silicon technology. The result: a lower cost, more efficient solution to medical imaging. Emergency departments, community hospitals, and rural clinics may benefit most.
Exo Imaging plans to commercialize ultrasound device
Exo (pronounced “echo,”) Imaging is reinventing ultrasound imaging with handheld technology and an easy-to-use workflow platform. The company’s interface Exo Works is designed to be accessible from both computers and mobile devices. Soon, medical doctors will be able to use the workflow platform for various tasks including viewing exams and documents, processing billing, and sending data to emergency medical responders.
“It is clear to us that ultrasound is the future — it is nonradiating and has no harmful side effects,” said CEO Sandeep Akkaraju. “We want to take the technology and put it in the palms of physicians. We also want to bring it down to the patient level.”
The California-based company recently raised $220 million in Series C funding. RA Captial Management led the investment round. Meanwhile BlackRock, Avidity Partners, Pure Vida Investments, and Sands Capital also participated, along with existing investors.
Exo will use the funding to prepare their new handheld ultrasound device and platform for commercial use. Pending FDA approval, Exo plans to make the handheld device readily available to doctors, hospital workers, and even telemedicine patients to use at home.
“Our vision is a healthcare system unconstrained by the four walls of a hospital and engineered for a world where providers can see clearly into every patient immediately,” Akkaraju said.
Find out more about Exo Imaging and Exo Works here.
