NUBURU Appoints Executive Chairman, Hamamatsu Reworks Board: People in the News: 09/27/2023

CENTENNIAL, Colo. — Industrial blue laser technology producer NUBURU Inc. appointed Ron Nicol executive chairman, effective immediately. Nicol, who joined NUBURU as a director in 2020, previously acted as independent chairman of the board since 2023. In this new role, he will take on executive administrative functions, as CEO and co-founder Mark Zediker focuses on leading NUBURU’s technology and development efforts.

SHIZUOKA, Japan — Among a series of changes to its board of directors, Hamamatsu Photonics KK appointed Takayuki Suzuki as representative director. Suzuki joined Hamamatsu in 1989 and has held a variety of managerial roles, most recently as senior managing executive. He takes on Akira Hiruma’s role, who was transitioned to the positions of director and chairman. This change will become official during the company’s 76th ordinary meeting in mid-December 2023. Hamamatsu also named Kaoru Minoshima as a candidate for director amid Kashiko Kodate’s retirement from the position of outside director. Minoshima currently serves as vice president of the University of Electro-Communications.

HALIFAX, Nova Scotia — Advanced materials and nanotechnology company Meta Materials Inc. appointed Mark Spencer as senior vice president of product and design for its authentication division. He will support the QUANTUM series nano-optic authentication products for banknotes, government documents, and brand protection, from design to integration. Spencer has over 20 years’ experience from key roles in banknote design, production, and product management, previously holding positions at De La Rue and Crane Currency.

Quantifi CFO Peter McDonald. Courtesy of Quantifi Photonics.

AUKLAND, New Zealand — Optical communications test and measurement solutions developer Quantifi Photonics added Peter McDonald and Fabian Abou Moussa as CFO and regional sales manager for EMEA, respectively. McDonald most recently served as investment director North America for New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, securing growth capital for New Zealand companies looking to expand their businesses in North America. Moussa has test and measurement experience in optical and RF solutions with hyperscalers, system integrators, and transceiver manufacturers across Asia, Europe, and the U.S.

Quantifi regional sales manager Fabian Abou Moussa. Courtesy of Quantifi Photonics.

SUNNYVALE, Calif. — NTT Research Inc. has made several new hires to its Physics & Informatics Lab, including three post-doctoral fellows. The fellows, Kyungduk Kim, Midya Parto, and Ryotatsu Yanagimoto, have research interest in complex photonic systems, optical phenomena arising from the harmonious interplay between non-Hermitian and topological effects alongside optical nonlinear processes, and understanding and engineering broadband quantum dynamics of optical photons in highly nonlinear systems, respectively.