Elio has raised $21 million to develop sensors that allow artificial intelligence systems to determine what information should be captured in real time. The funding round was led by Innovation Endeavors and Xora, with participation from Kevin Weil and Scribble Ventures. Existing investors UpWest and Resolute Ventures, which led Elio’s previous round, also participated.
Elio is developing sensing systems designed around the needs of AI models rather than the capabilities of the human eye.
Traditional cameras and sensors generally capture a fixed representation of an environment. Software then analyzes the resulting image or dataset after it has been collected.
Elio’s technology allows an AI system to change what the sensor captures based on the question it is attempting to answer. The approach is intended to provide the most relevant physical information without requiring the system to process a complete conventional image.
The company places computation within the optical system itself. Dynamic layers of micromirrors manipulate light before it reaches the underlying sensor, extracting signals that could be lost or compressed by a conventional lens.
AI models learn how the optical system behaves and adjust the sensor in real time. Elio said this allows the technology to recognize objects and materials based on their physical signatures rather than relying only on visible pixels.
The company believes a single Elio module could perform functions that otherwise require multiple specialized sensors.
Its software-controlled architecture may also allow the same hardware to gain additional capabilities after deployment. This could make sensing systems more adaptable and reduce the need to replace physical modules when new applications are introduced.
Elio sees potential uses in microscopy, semiconductor manufacturing, robotics and defense.
In life sciences, the technology could allow researchers to observe how living cells respond to a drug over time without staining, fixing or destroying the sample.
Traditional testing methods can require researchers to alter or destroy a biological sample to collect a single measurement. Elio is seeking to provide continuous and label-free observation.
In semiconductor manufacturing, the sensors could help engineers inspect stacked chip layers and identify defects without physically cutting into a wafer.
For robotics, Elio aims to provide several sensing functions through one module that can self-calibrate and switch operating modes as environmental conditions change.
Defense applications could include detecting small and fast-moving threats, such as drones, at extended ranges and under conditions involving darkness, haze or other visibility challenges.
Elio is led by founder and CEO Nadav Grossinger and Chief Technology Officer Nitay Romano. The two executives have worked together in optics and AI for more than 20 years.
Grossinger and Romano previously helped build Pebbles Interfaces, which was acquired by Meta. They later spent seven years leading development of physical sensing technology used in Meta’s augmented and virtual reality headsets.
Grossinger also founded ColoRight, which was acquired by L’Oreal. Romano previously served as Chief Optical Scientist at Holo/Or and has experience in diffractive optics, a scientific foundation underlying Elio’s technology.
The company is headquartered in San Mateo, California.
KEY QUOTE:
“Today’s sensors capture one fixed view of the world, decided in advance, shaped by what the human eye can see rather than what a machine needs.”
“Elio’s sensors let AI decide what to capture, in real time, based on what it is trying to figure out, delivering exactly the information needed, when it is needed, instead of a fixed picture to interpret after the fact.”
Elio
