Matthew Putman of Nanotronics Answers Four Questions for Founders
Nanotronics invents instruments and platforms that redefine factory control. A single platform steers production toward optimal end products and promotes discovery, reducing waste and costs. Growing from a legacy of revolutionizing advanced inspection, Nanotronics is engineering the infrastructure for every industry to build on.
1. Why did you start Nanotronics? Do you remember the moment when you first thought of the idea?
I wanted to see inspiring technologies that most people never thought possible—yet I knew were invented for the world outside of labs. One evening watching Star Trek I noticed that some of the utopian sci-fi was actually being created in labs where I worked. I knew that these technologies were not meant to stay in the labs and research settings. I decided to work with others to bring these inventions to industry. I called my father, who is himself a talented inventor and entrepreneur, and I told him that we should start a company. I think we named it Nanotronics that day and filed to be a corporation. We moved fast.
2. How do you see Nanotronics impacting how we live our lives?
There was a time when most patents came from individuals. Now, large corporations apply for far more patents than individuals. We see a future where factories can be made by inventors — not just corporations. We need to revive the aspiration to build and invent. Nanotronics builds and invents and by doing so, we hope to provide a way for others to as well. Optimism and confidence can change lives.
3. What is your personal relationship with technology?
If we define technology in the broader sense, I feel like the luckiest person, living in the best time in history. I love flying to Europe and Asia, I love the cinema, I love the abundance of food, and many, many more technologies. More than that I love those technologies that are on the cusp of a great change. I look forward to genomics leading to personalized medicine, which will happen very soon. I look forward to advancements in nanotechnology and AI that will allow us to build and create. It’s going to be a lot of fun going forward—as long as we remember that technology isn’t just about advertising through social networks.
4. What do you see as your responsibility to make technology ethical and accessible to all?
I think everyone should have access to the tools that will sustain humanity’s greatest strengths as intelligent and creative explorers. My dream is that people will use Nanotronics’ products to build a future that brings greater freedom and abundance to everybody. Maybe I can’t do that. But I can open whatever doors are available to me.
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