Lumiode is a New York-based fabless semiconductor startup building truly-monolithic micro-LED microdisplays. By depositing low-temperature polycrystalline silicon (LTPS) thin-film-transistor backplanes directly onto LED epiwafers - skipping the wafer-bonding step used by most rivals - Lumiode produces ultra-high-brightness, low-power, small-form-factor displays aimed at augmented reality, head-up displays and projection. Spun out of Columbia University in 2012 and led by co-founder and acting CEO Ioannis (John) Kymissis, the company raised roughly $16 million in venture funding before agreeing in December 2025 to be acquired by Taiwan's PlayNitride.
XL Batteries is a Marlborough, Massachusetts startup building an Organic Flow Battery for grid-scale, long-duration energy storage. Spun out of Columbia University chemistry research, the company uses proprietary organic molecules dissolved in pH-neutral water instead of vanadium in acid - producing a non-flammable, non-toxic, non-corrosive battery assembled from commodity pumps, tanks and tubes. The pitch: safe, scalable storage that can run for 10, 20, even 50 hours by simply enlarging the tanks, at costs targeted below lithium-ion for long durations.