EpiCrystals

In 2003, a new player emerged in Tampere, Finland, a company called EpiCrystals, founded by Tomi Jouhti. The company focused on developing advanced laser light sources for the next generation of projection displays. Think about applications like heads-up displays, smart glasses, and even projectors small enough to fit in a cell phone. Their core technology, a laser platform called DeCIBEL, was designed to enable ultra-compact and cost-efficient projectors. This was a bet on a future where high-quality projection could be embedded into everyday devices. The company gained traction, and in February 2009, secured a significant Series A funding round of $7.67 million from investors including Tesi and VNT Management. This capital was crucial for their continued research and development in a competitive deep-tech space. While EpiCrystals developed its technology as a standalone company for years, a significant event in the broader semiconductor industry was the acquisition of a similar Swedish company, Epiluvac AB, by the American equipment manufacturer Veeco Instruments in January 2023. Veeco, a major player in semiconductor process equipment, made this move to accelerate its entry into the high-growth market for silicon carbide (SiC) epitaxy equipment, driven by the electric vehicle boom. This acquisition highlighted a trend of larger equipment manufacturers strategically acquiring smaller, specialized firms to gain a foothold in emerging, high-growth markets.