Feb 8 2010
Sand 9, Inc., a start-up company developing advanced nano-mechanical resonator technology for the wireless device market, today announced the appointment of Sand 9 board member and former VBrick CEO Vince Graziani as Chief Executive Officer. Graziani will lead Sand 9 into the next phase of growth as it prepares to bring its high-performance MEMS resonator technology into volume production.
Graziani brings nearly 25 years of demonstrated success increasing companies’ market share and managing product introductions in the networking and telecommunications industry. He has raised over $90 million in venture capital throughout his career. Graziani joins Sand 9 from VBrick, where he served as CEO for the past three years. Prior to that, he was the president and CEO of Sandburst Corporation, which provided advanced, carrier-class switching solutions that drive real-time voice, video, and data communications services across the Internet. Mr. Graziani established Sandburst’s strategic product direction, oversaw product introductions, and raised four rounds of venture financing leading to the successful acquisition of the company to Broadcom Corporation. Additionally, Graziani served as senior director, Business Development and Strategic Alliances at Broadcom Corporation and has held senior management positions at Intel and Siemens.
“I have had the opportunity to work with the Sand 9 founding team since the company’s inception as an advisor and board member,” said Graziani. “The company’s game-changing technology, its team’s successful track record, and the large addressable market made the CEO position an opportunity too good to pass up. I look forward to working with the Sand 9 team to grow the company into the leader in the MEMS resonator technology market. ”
Sand 9 is dedicated to the design of components that will dramatically improve the performance and increase the capabilities of electronic devices. The company is introducing a disruptive MEMS technology, the Temperature Compensated MEMS Oscillator (TCMOTM), to replace quartz crystal frequency sources in high performance applications such as 3G cellular, GPS and other communications. The company’s proprietary technology offers significant improvement over existing solutions and aims to revolutionize the wireless components market.
“I’ve worked closely with Vince at a number of companies in the past and am thrilled to have him join the Sand 9 team,” said David Aronoff, general partner, Flybridge Capital Partners and Sand 9 Board Member. “Vince’s passion and demonstrated success in bringing technologies to market, combined with the world-class technical team already in place, positions the company well as it moves from product development into product production.”
“Sand 9 has developed a disruptive technology platform for the wireless components market,” said Hemant Taneja, managing director, General Catalyst Partners and a member of Sand 9’s board. “Since the company’s inception, Vince has shared our vision for building an enduring enterprise, and I am thrilled he has decided to take on the role of CEO.”
Founded in 2007 and based in Boston, MA, Sand 9 is a venture funded startup company, dedicated to the design of components that will dramatically increase the capabilities of electronic devices. The company’s investors include Flybridge Capital Partners, General Catalyst and Khosla Ventures.