Startup uBeam scoops $10 million in funding, signs big names

While companies such as Samsung have touted wireless charging capability in their phones, the technology presently requires devices to rest on a pad to charge. And while this is an improvement over requiring the device to be plugged in, there have been a number of startups that are trying to build a system that can transmit power over much longer distances.

One of these companies, uBeam, was recently able to use ultrasound to transmit power to a smartphone case from more than 15 feet away. In addition, the technology has shown enough promise to have attracted two things: significant seed money and two big names for the executive team. The latter is especially interesting because it indicates that the technology is within striking distance from production.

The company raised $10 million in Series B financing to go along with its previous $13.2 million venture funding. According to TechCrunch, the investors included a number of well-known strategic venture capital players.

In addition, the company was able to attract top-end executive talents to transition into production. Interestingly, both executives have extensive experience in supply chain and electronics manufacturing. The new COO, Jeff Devine, has 30 years of practice in mobile device and electronics manufacturing with Cisco, Palm and Nokia. New CFO Monica Hushen was a former executive who held roles at Apple, Palm, startup Zeepro and other consumer electronics companies. Both hires indicate that the company is working on prototypes or even small-scale production.

In addition to the executive hires, the company’s job listings include a number of engineering positions that indicate that it is gearing up to at least a reference design in the near future.