About

Vesper: The World’s Most Advanced Acoustic Sensors

Overview

Vesper offers the first MEMS microphones that withstand real-world use in smartphones and other connected devices. Vesper’s are the only MEMS microphones rugged enough to withstand water, dust and particle contaminants. They’re high-performance and enable acoustically rich experiences for any application – from smartphones and wearables to Internet of Things (IoT) devices and connected automobiles.

What We Do

Technology changes, but the natural human preference for communicating by voice is constant. As the number of electronic devices in our world grows, our need for natural communication is even greater. And whether we are communicating with people or machines, the quality and reliability of the voice interface becomes increasingly critical. Microphones are the gateway between the digital world and the natural world of human voice.

Vesper’s mission is to dramatically improve the reliability of the voice user interface for smart speakers, connected automobiles, smartphones and any connected device using our proprietary piezoelectric MEMS technology invented by our founders at the University of Michigan.

The Piezoelectric Difference

Vesper piezoelectric microphones operate on a completely different physical principle from all other MEMS and electret condenser-style audio devices. Using the piezoelectric effect, first discovered by Jacques and Pierre Curie, Vesper’s MEMS microphones directly convert sound wave energy into an electrical signal.

Beyond just delivering an excellent signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), Vesper microphones are stably matched, making them uniquely suited for large array applications in smartphones, tablets, smart home devices and other connected products. Vesper’s are the most durable, waterproof, shockproof, and both dust- and particle-resistant microphones on the market.

About Us

With roots at the University of Michigan and initial funding from National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Institutes of Health (NIH) and National Science Foundation (NSF), Vesper’s leadership team has is one of the most experienced in the MEMS industry. Based in Boston, MA, the company is privately held and is funded by Accomplice, AAC Technologies, XinGang Electronics, Hyperplane and strategic partners.

Meet the Vesper Team.

Collectively, Vesper’s management team has developed over 20 MEMS products, shipped hundreds of millions of MEMS devices, pioneered the commercialization of piezoelectric MEMS, secured dozens of patents and raised tens of millions of dollars and sold hundreds of millions of components to the world’s largest and most respected OEMs. Together we are reinventing sound.

Drag photos to navigate. Click to view bio.

Swipe photos to navigate. Click to view bio.

Rick Hegberg

Rick Hegberg

Executive Chairman and CEO
Trudy Coleman

Trudy Coleman

CFO
Lorenzo Ponzanelli

Lorenzo Ponzanelli

SVP, Sales and Business Development
Lori Boyd

Lori Boyd

Sn. Director of Supply Chain
Gerald Koh

Gerald Koh

VP of Sales and Marketing China

  • Veteran semiconductor Industry leader with proven success driving multi-billion dollar companies through significant transformation and growth. Hegberg brings experience from a career that spans roles like CEO, general management, sales and marketing, private equity funding, and venture capital.

    Rick Hegberg’s executive career began in sales and marketing at an early-stage memory company after graduating from Marquette University with advanced studies at Wharton School of Business, MIT, and Harvard. With advancing responsibilities, he has worked at notable technology firms such as AMD, ATI, Lucent, Micron, Qualcomm, SanDisk and others. Hegberg brings experience from a career that spans roles like CEO, general management, sales and marketing, private equity funding, and venture capital. Most recently, Hegberg was the senior vice president of global pathways and alliances for NetApp, a cloud data storage and management company.

  • Trudy Coleman previously held senior finance roles at public and private companies. Most recently, she ushered a $400 million PE backed international logistics company through it’s merger with a SPAC. Trudy has developed expertise setting the foundation for growth by implementing effective strategies, policies and procedures. Ms. Coleman is a licensed CPA, and worked with EY and PwC earlier in her career. Ms. Coleman holds an MS in Accounting from the University of Rhode Island.

  • Secured design wins at the world’s largest technology companies and built sales and support organizations for some of the most respected MEMS and semiconductor companies in the industry.

    Lorenzo Ponzanelli is SVP of Sales and Business Development at Vesper. He joined Vesper in 2019 with more than 20 years of sales leadership experience and a demonstrated track record of building long-term business relationships across the industry. Most recently, Lorenzo spent over 10 years at Micron Technology, world leader in innovative memory solutions, where he led a team that generated $4.8B+ in global sales annually. Earlier experiences include relevant global sales and marketing positions at Numonyx BV and STMicroelectronics. Lorenzo holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree from University of Genoa and an International MBA in general management from Politecnico of Milan.

  • Supply Chain and Operations professional with a rich breadth of experience at both large, multinational companies and dynamic start-ups. Lori has experience within a multitude of industries and focus areas including strategy, S&OP, product management, and customer excellence.

    Lori holds Supply Chain Management degrees and APICS Certifications. Prior to joining Vesper in 2017, Lori was an early Operations Lead at Sonos. Additionally, Lori spent 14 years with advancing responsibilities in Cisco’s World Class Supply Chain Organizations. Lori worked in additional Supply Chain Companies such as Caterpillar, Lam Research, and Applied Materials.

  • Gerald Koh is VP of Sales and Marketing China. He joined Vesper in 2020 with over 20 years of experience in the semiconductors, he has worked in key technology firms such as Lucent, STMicroelectronics and Micron. He has served top tier Global and Asia customers for all their design and manufacturing activities in Asia and has managed a team that was responsible for over $3B Asia revenue. He has also completed overseas postings and travelled extensively in Asia. Gerald holds a Diploma in Electronics & Communication Engineering from Singapore Polytechnic and Bachelor of Business, Double Majors (Marketing and Management) from Monash University.

Board of Directors

Richard Hegberg – Executive Chairman of Vesper Board of Directors and CEO

Rick Hegberg’s executive career began in sales and marketing at an early-stage memory company after graduating from Marquette University with advanced studies at Wharton School of Business, MIT, and Harvard. With advancing responsibilities, he has worked at notable technology firms such as AMD, ATI, Lucent, Micron, Qualcomm, SanDisk and others. Hegberg brings experience from a career that spans roles like CEO, general management, sales and marketing, private equity funding, and venture capital. Most recently, Hegberg was the senior vice president of global pathways and alliances for NetApp, a cloud data storage and management company.

 

Charles Swoboda

In his role as President of Cape Point Advisors, Chuck Swoboda offers management consulting focused on growth and technology challenges. As former Chairman and CEO of Cree (NASDAQ: CREE), a worldwide manufacturer of LED and semiconductor solutions for wireless and power applications, Swoboda helped turn a $177 million company into a $1.6 billion global market leader. His 30 years of experience in technology, semiconductors, industrial, automotive and e-commerce in addition to management expertise in strategy, marketing, manufacturing and intellectual property make him an ideal fit for Vesper’s board. Swoboda holds a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from Marquette University.

Hassen Ahmed

Hassan Ahmed has more than 30 years of experience in engineering and management. He currently serves as Chairman and CEO of Affirmed Networks, a cloud-native mobile core solution company. Prior to Affirmed Networks, Ahmed worked as a senior advisor at Charles River Ventures and spent 10 years as Chairman and CEO of Sonus Networks (NASDAQ: SONS), a global leader in secure and intelligent cloud communications. Ahmed is known for growing Sonus from an idea into a publicly traded company focused on enabling the transformation of telephony to IP. Before Sonus, he served as EVP and GM of the Core Switching division of Ascend Communications and VP Engineering and Chief Technology Officer of Cascade Communications. He has also held key leadership positions at Motorola and Analog Devices. Ahmed holds a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering and a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering from Carleton University as well as a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from Stanford University.

Jeff Fagnan

Jeff Fagnan is a founder of Accomplice, where he focuses on emerging companies in enterprise and Internet infrastructure. Jeff is well known as a founding investor, working with most of his portfolio since inception, sometimes as a co-founder including Veracode (Sold to CA Technologies‍). Jeff sits on the board of many scaling startups including AngelList, CoinList, Carbon Black (CBLK), dataxu, Earnest (sold to Navient), Edgewise, Freshbooks, Hopper, InsightSquared, Integral Ad Science (sold to Vista Equity Partners), Perch, PillPack (sold to AMZN), Recorded Future, Teachable, Vesper, Willing, and Threat Stack. He is the founder of Spearhead, a program that provides funding and mentorship for new angel investors; Maiden Lane, the first investment vehicle built on top of AngelList; Boston Syndicates (BOSS), a federated movement to create stronger angel substrate in New England; and TUGG (Technology Underwriting Greater Good), a nonprofit foundation harnessing the power of the tech ecosystem to catalyze social innovation in New England. In 2016 he received the National Venture Capital Association annual American Spirit Award. In 2017 he received the Boston Business Journal’s CEO Social Leadership Award.