# Rob Devlin

> Rob Devlin is the co-founder and CEO of Metalenz, the first company to take metasurface optics out of the lab and into mass-market consumer devices. A Harvard-trained applied physicist who studied under Federico Capasso, he turned a Science cover paper into a fabless optical-semiconductor company that prints flat lenses in standard chip foundries. Under his leadership Metalenz shipped the world's first metasurfaces in consumer products with STMicroelectronics in 2022 and launched Polar ID, a polarization-based face authentication system. He keeps the first wafer of 10,000 metasurface lenses on his desk as a reminder of how a single fabrication shot eclipsed an entire PhD's worth of handmade devices.

- **Role:** Co-founder and CEO at Metalenz
- **Organizations:** Metalenz, Harvard University, Drexel University
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Joint BS/MS, Electrical Engineering and Materials Science, Drexel University, Ph.D., Applied Physics (lab of Prof. Federico Capasso), Harvard University
- **Known for:** Co-founded Metalenz, the first company to commercialize metasurface optics for mass markets, Shipped the world's first metasurfaces in consumer devices (2022, with STMicroelectronics), Author or co-author of 20+ publications, one of which was a Science cover article

## Career timeline

- **2016** — Co-authored a metasurface paper featured on the cover of Science and named one of Science's 10 breakthroughs of the year
- **2016** — Co-founded Metalenz with Federico Capasso and Bart Riley to commercialize meta-optics
- **2016-2021** — Led Metalenz through the search for product-market fit, scaling metasurfaces into standard semiconductor foundries
- **2022** — Announced the world's first metasurfaces in consumer devices in partnership with STMicroelectronics
- **2022** — Closed Series B funding round ($30M)
- **2024** — Launched Polar ID, a polarization-based face authentication system
- **2025** — Received Optica's Kevin P. Thompson Optical Design Innovator Award

## Achievements

- Co-founded Metalenz, the first company to commercialize metasurface optics for mass markets
- Shipped the world's first metasurfaces in consumer devices (2022, with STMicroelectronics)
- Author or co-author of 20+ publications, one of which was a Science cover article
- Work named among Science's 10 breakthroughs of the year in 2016
- Holds 15+ patents and patent applications
- Recipient of Optica's 2025 Kevin P. Thompson Optical Design Innovator Award
- Developed Polar ID, the first polarization sensor for consumer markets

## Latest updates

- **2025-03** — Featured in Harvard Gazette piece 'From Harvard lab to your living room' on Metalenz's commercialization journey
- **2025-01** — Named recipient of Optica's 2025 Kevin P. Thompson Optical Design Innovator Award

## Links

- Website: https://metalenz.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-devlin-5483a859
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/MetalenzNews
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_5mCRKKR6Q

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/rob-devlin
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-03