About Akustica - Company Overview

Who We Are

Akustica designs innovative sound solutions that improve the way sound is captured, processed, and reproduced in electronic products. Its MicroElectroMechanical Systems (MEMS)-based acoustic System-on-Chip solutions deliver exceptional performance capabilities and design advantages over conventional acoustic components. Akustica's unique and patented process allows it to deliver great sound in an extremely small package.

Akustica was formed in 2001 when Dr. Kaigham (Ken) Gabriel, widely recognized as the architect of the MEMS industry, and technology start-up veteran James H. Rock, partnered to commercialize acoustic MEMS technology from Carnegie Mellon University. Akustica holds the exclusive license to these patents and continues to independently develop additional technologies supporting the company's mission to create and commercialize a new generation of sound solutions.

What We Do

Akustica's acoustic System-on-Chip solutions - called Microphone Chips and Speaker Chips - combine the functionality of MEMS microphones or speakers with software and microelectronics onto a single, standard CMOS semiconductor chip. Unlike other MEMS chips that are fabricated using captive, costly and cumbersome manufacturing processes, the starting point for the manufacture of Akustica's chips are standard CMOS wafers which can be produced at any standard CMOS foundry.

Real World Applications

For consumers, Akustica's chips will enhance many of the electronic products used today, including cell phones, hearing aids, computers, and cars. Imagine talking on a mobile phone, for instance, that suppresses the noise of a passing bus so that the person on the other end of the conversation only hears a crystal-clear voice signal. Or consider a digital video camera whose microphone follows the direction of the subject, and picks up only his or her voice.

Akustica's chips also create significant design, manufacturing and brand advantages for Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEM). These advantages include component reduction and acoustic sub-system integration, increased acoustic reliability, and lower installed cost. These advantages will ultimately allow manufacturers to design and create new, feature-rich and increasingly reliable products for their customers.