# Mike Horton

> Mike Horton is an American engineer and serial deep-tech founder who turns physics into products. He co-founded Crossbow Technology in 1995 out of UC Berkeley, commercialized MEMS motion sensors, and sold the company for about $50 million. He later built GEODNET, a blockchain-incentivized network of roughly 21,000 ground stations that has become the world's largest decentralized GNSS reference network, and now leads HYFIX Spatial Intelligence, a Santa Clara startup that raised a $15M seed led by Craft Ventures to build American-made positioning-and-autonomy chips for drones and robots.

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at HYFIX Spatial Intelligence
- **Organizations:** HYFIX Spatial Intelligence, GEODNET, Anello Photonics, ACEINNA, Crossbow Technology, Moog Inc.
- **From:** Austin, Texas, USA
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.S., Electrical Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, M.S., Electrical Engineering (MSEE), University of California, Berkeley
- **Known for:** Co-founded and led Crossbow Technology to a roughly $50M exit (Moog Inc. and MEMSIC)., Holds 20+ patents across navigation, MEMS, photonics, and decentralized network architecture., First FAA-approved TSO holder for silicon MEMS-based attitude and heading reference systems (AHRS).

## Career timeline

- **1995** — Co-founded Crossbow Technology with UC Berkeley advisor A. Richard Newton to commercialize MEMS sensor technology.
- **2001** — Built commercial 'motes' (Mica2, MicaZ, IRIS, iMote2, TelosB) for Berkeley's Smartdust and TinyOS sensor-network research.
- **2003** — Named one of MIT Technology Review's top innovators under 35.
- **2011** — Crossbow Technology, grown to ~$23M revenue, sold in two transactions (Moog Inc. and MEMSIC) totaling about $50M.
- **2017** — Served as CTO of ACEINNA / Anello Photonics, leading inertial navigation and silicon photonic optical gyroscope work.
- **2021** — Created GEODNET, a decentralized (DePIN) RTK correction network using blockchain incentives.
- **2025** — GEODNET cited in U.S. Congress as an example of decentralized infrastructure aiding innovation and competitiveness.
- **2026** — HYFIX raised a $15M seed led by Craft Ventures to build an American-made positioning-and-autonomy SoC; unveiled the H1 chip.

## Achievements

- Co-founded and led Crossbow Technology to a roughly $50M exit (Moog Inc. and MEMSIC).
- Holds 20+ patents across navigation, MEMS, photonics, and decentralized network architecture.
- First FAA-approved TSO holder for silicon MEMS-based attitude and heading reference systems (AHRS).
- Created GEODNET, the world's largest decentralized GNSS reference network (~21,000 ground stations).
- Named one of MIT Technology Review's top innovators under 35 (2003).
- Named one of the Top 50 Sensor Technology Experts by Sensors Magazine (2019).
- Best Presentation Award at the Institute of Navigation's GNSS+ conference (2021 and 2022).
- GEODNET referenced in 2025 U.S. congressional hearings on decentralized infrastructure (FIT21).

## Latest updates

- **2026-04** — HYFIX raised a $15M seed round led by Craft Ventures to build an American-made SoC for drones and robots.
- **2026-06** — Detailed the HYFIX H1 chip's 'stack compression' architecture, dual-antenna heading, and GNSS integrity design in technical press.

## Links

- Website: https://hyfix.ai
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikeahorton/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/mikeahorton
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-3UQzoG3E4

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/mike-horton
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-22