# Eran Steinberg

> Eran Steinberg is a serial entrepreneur, prolific inventor, and IP strategist who co-founded FotoNation in 1997 - selling it, buying it back, and doing it again a third time. Best known for pioneering the automatic red-eye removal technology now standard in virtually every digital camera and smartphone on earth, he holds 300+ patents across imaging, medical devices, and drug development. A licensed USPTO patent agent with four graduate and undergraduate degrees - including both a B.F.A. in Fine Art Photography and an M.S. in Imaging Science - he bridges the worlds of deep technology and creative vision. Currently CEO and Chairman of Vaica Medical and Chairman of FotoNation following a third management buyout, he also lectures at Johns Hopkins University.

- **Role:** CEO & Chairman at Vaica Medical; Chairman at FotoNation
- **Organizations:** FotoNation, Vaica Medical, Xperi Inc., Tessera Technologies, EyeQ Photos, PicLinq, mPerpetuo, Epix Imaging, Pluritas, Johns Hopkins Advanced Academic Programs, NUI Galway
- **Education:** M.S. in Imaging Science, Rochester Institute of Technology, M.S. in Regulatory Science, Johns Hopkins University, B.S. in Mathematics and Computer Science, Unknown, B.F.A. in Fine Art Photography, Unknown
- **Known for:** Pioneered automatic red-eye removal technology now standard in virtually every digital camera and smartphone, Named inventor on 300+ granted patents across image processing, digital photography, medical devices, and drug development, Co-founded FotoNation which embedded technology in over 3.6 billion devices worldwide

## Career timeline

- **1990s** — VP at Epix Imaging; company listed on California exchange in public flotation
- **1997** — Co-founded FotoNation with Yury Prilutsky, Dr. Peter Corcoran, and Petronel Bigioi, growing from NUI Galway research into camera image processing software
- **~2000** — Sold FotoNation to Zing.com at the height of the dot-com boom
- **2002** — Bought FotoNation back after Zing.com collapsed; refocused on licensing camera software to OEMs
- **2007** — FotoNation revenues doubled to $14 million; software embedded in 80+ million digital cameras across 8 of the top 10 camera manufacturers including Olympus, Pentax, Kodak, Sony, Canon, HP, and Samsung
- **2008** — Sold FotoNation to Tessera Technologies for $29 million (plus up to $10M in milestone consideration)
- **2010** — Appointed Chairman of the DTS Board of Directors
- **2016** — DTS acquired by Tessera Technologies for $850 million; Steinberg appointed President of Xperi (the newly merged entity)
- **2019** — Earned M.S. in Regulatory Science from Johns Hopkins University; continued teaching at Johns Hopkins Advanced Academic Programs
- **2020** — Became Chairman of the Board at EyeQ Photos following its acquisition of Athentech (Perfectly Clear technology)
- **2021** — Joined Vaica Medical board as Chairman
- **2022** — Appointed CEO & Chairman of Vaica Medical (February 2022)
- **2023-2024** — Led FotoNation management buyout from Xperi (third time working with founding team); became Chairman of the Board of FotoNation again - the 'hat-trick buyout'

## Achievements

- Pioneered automatic red-eye removal technology now standard in virtually every digital camera and smartphone
- Named inventor on 300+ granted patents across image processing, digital photography, medical devices, and drug development
- Co-founded FotoNation which embedded technology in over 3.6 billion devices worldwide
- Licensed patent agent before the USPTO (License #53,637)
- Five successful company exits as a founder
- Led FotoNation through three separate buyout-and-sale cycles (the 'hat-trick buyout')
- FotoNation technology present in 8 of the top 10 camera manufacturers by 2007
- Software in 80+ million digital cameras and over 50% of digital cameras sold worldwide
- Doubled FotoNation revenues to $14 million in a single year (2007)
- Co-developed face tracking technology capable of tracking up to 15 simultaneous faces in real time (2003-2008)
- Became President of Xperi following the $850M DTS acquisition
- Earned dual M.S. degrees in both Imaging Science and Regulatory Science, reflecting a bridge between technology and healthcare

## Latest updates

- **2024-01** — Led the FotoNation management buyout from Xperi Corp, returning with co-founders Petronel Bigioi (as CEO) and Sumat Mehra (as CBO). Took role as Chairman of the Board.
- **2022-02** — Appointed CEO & Chairman of Vaica Medical, building on his role as Chairman since 2021. Set immediate goal of advancing remote patient monitoring and medication adherence commercial channels.

## Links

- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/eran-steinberg-4027194

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/eran-steinberg
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-30