Tuesday, October 11, 2011

RemoteReality rounds up $2M for camera tech

By Michelle Lang

RemoteReality Corp., a maker of 360-degree camera technology for surveillance and security applications, has drawn in $2 million of a planned $3.5 million equity funding round, the Westborough company reported in a regulatory filing today.

The company’s camera technology includes both real-time video and analysis software that supports government, military and commercial markets. RemoteReality has taken in $6 million from research grants and development contracts, the company said on its website, from DARPA, the Office of Naval Research, the U.S. Marine Corps and other groups in the U.S. Department of Defense.

Although today’s filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission does not identify the five investors in the funding round, it does include an extensive list of related persons, including existing board members Robert Anderson, president of Omniken; Matthew McCooe, managing partner of Chart Venture Partners; and Daniel Wagner, director of investments, Connecticut Innovations. New board member Khaled El-Marsafy, general manager of Al-Deera Holding Co. and co-founder and vice chairman of Univest Group, also joined the list. RemoteReality’s executive team also listed includes chairman and CEO Dennis McGinn; COO Michael Zwolinski; Venkat Peri, CTO and VP of research and development; and Raghu Menon, EVP of advanced programs and sales. The company is backed by Chart Venture Partners and Connecticut Innovations.

Officials at RemoteReality were not immediately available by phone or email to discuss the funding.

In 2008, RemoteReality brought on board retired U.S. Navy vice admiral and Attleboro native Dennis McGinn to lead the company as CEO.  At the time, McGinn said RemoteReality was renewing its focus on the defense industry.