Governor Hochul Announces Winners of Round Eight of Luminate NY OPI Accelerator Competition
Pensievision Receives $1 Million in Investment; Four Additional Companies Secure Follow-on Investments
Applications Now Being Accepted for Round Nine of the Optics, Photonics, and Imaging Competition until January 12, 2026
Investing in Next-Generation Ideas Supports the Region’s Focused Comprehensive Strategy to Revitalize Communities and Grow the Economy
ROCHESTER, N.Y., Oct. 22, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Governor Kathy Hochul today announced Pensievision as the winner of Round Eight of the Luminate NY optics, photonics, and imaging (OPI) startup accelerator competition. The San Diego, California based company received the "Company of the Year" Award at Luminate NY Finals 2025, which was held live at Arbor Midtown in downtown Rochester and streamed online. Pensievision will receive $1 million in investment from New York State through the Finger Lakes Forward Upstate Revitalization Initiative. The company will use the follow-on funding to anchor its growth in the region by engaging with local supply chains, hiring engineering talent from area universities, and partnering with Rochester-based design and manufacturing firms. Luminate NY, which is administered by NextCorps, is the world's largest business accelerator for emerging companies that have technologies enabled by optics, photonics, and imaging.
“Thanks in part to the successful Luminate NY competition, our state continues to lead the nation on cutting-edge technological ideas and research,” Governor Hochul said. “The winners of the competition’s eighth round represent some of the world's most innovative businesses that are bringing transformative products in the optics, photonics and imaging supply chain to market. I congratulate this year’s winners, and remain committed to supporting the fast-growing, high-tech businesses and industries that will move New York forward.”
Pensievision has developed breakthrough 3D imaging for demanding environments, from medical diagnostics and factory floors to orbital missions. Its technology combines a miniaturized single-lens setup, artificial intelligence, and astronomy-inspired optics to enable high-precision insights in tight or complex environments where bulky, multi-lens or laser-based systems fail.
Pensievision President Tal Almog said, “Luminate gave us unmatched access to optics expertise, precision manufacturers, and advisors who helped shape our business model and customer acquisition strategy. It has fast-tracked our ability to validate use cases, secure pilots, and prepare for institutional funding. This follow-on funding will help us to reinforce Rochester’s role as a global hub for optics and photonics innovation.”
amPICQ, originally from Hyderabad, India, and now located in Rochester, New York, was awarded the Outstanding Graduate Award and $500,000 in follow-on funding. Its team is designing and developing Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs) to make quantum-safe security both practical and accessible across Quantumcom, Datacom, and Telecom industries.
For the first time, three companies were tied for the Distinguished Graduate Award, with each being awarded $200,000. Oblate Optics, from San Diego, makes ultra-thin lenses that keep laser beams in perfect focus—even on curved or uneven surfaces—without the need to move or refocus the optics. Münster, Germany based Pixel Photonics is removing the barriers to the widespread use of superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) with its waveguide-integrating design (WI-SNSPDs) to support OEM integration across quantum communications, microscopy, medical diagnostics, and advanced sensing. SNOChip, from Princeton, NJ, is pioneering on-chip optical components, such as microlens arrays, computer-generated holograms, and metasurfaces, designed for seamless integration with semiconductor lasers and sensor chips.
Event attendees voted LirOptic as the Audience Choice, earning $10,000 in follow-on funding. The investments were presented after a panel of judges from the OPI industry and venture capital community scored the participating companies based on their business pitches and due diligence completed during the seven-month accelerator program.
The Finals event marks the completion of the eighth year of the cohort-based program, which now includes more than 80 companies in its portfolio, with an estimated combined market value of $700 million. As required by the award, all winners of the competition will commit to establishing operations in the region for at least the next 18 months.
Since its inception, Luminate NY has invested $21 million in 85 startups. Collectively, they have created more than 210 jobs in New York State and spent $21.6 million on more than 140 projects with regional design, manufacturing and supply chain companies. Twenty-two international companies have relocated to New York, and 41 portfolio companies have women in the C-suite, with 31 identified as MWBEs.
Luminate NY Managing Director Dr. Sujatha Ramanujan said, “Each year, the caliber of innovation in Luminate speaks to the strength of the program and the unique ecosystem New York offers. What stands out in this round is how many of the technologies are positioned to not only transform markets like healthcare and advanced manufacturing but also to accelerate growth in the semiconductor space, an industry where our region has critical advantages. Luminate ensures that these companies are not just developing breakthrough ideas but are equipped with the resources, networks, and capital to bring them to scale here in New York.”
The Luminate NY accelerator is based in Rochester and selects 10 to 12 promising companies each year to participate in its hybrid, seven-month program. During this time, companies are provided with more than 200 hours of instruction, along with the resources to advance their technologies and businesses. Applications are now being accepted for Round Nine through January 12, 2026. Teams will receive $100,000 in funding upon program start, with the expectation that $50,000 will be used to engage resources in the Finger Lakes region. Teams are expected to come to Rochester for select weeks and to also participate virtually during their time in the accelerator.
The Finger Lakes Region is home to an incredibly rich ecosystem for forward-thinking entrepreneurs who are looking to grow their business. Rochester offers the American Institute for Manufacturing Integrated Photonics’ Test, Assembly, and Packaging facility at Eastman Business Park, the University of Rochester’s Institute of Optics, the Rochester Institute of Technology, and more than 150 local OPI companies, which employ more than 19,000 people who are building on the region’s legacy as a global imaging leader.
Empire State Development President, CEO and Commissioner Hope Knight said, “The Luminate NY competition’s laser focus on accelerating innovation and investment in New York's world-renowned optics, photonics and imaging industries has further established the Finger Lakes as an OPI hub. Congratulations to all finalists who took part in Round Eight of the Luminate competition, and we are excited about the growth and impact that these forward-thinking companies will bring to the region.”
State Senator Jeremy Cooney said, “I’m excited to congratulate the winners of Round Eight of the Luminate NY accelerator program. As a city with a deep legacy of leading the way on new and developing technologies, it’s only right that we continue to invest in companies on the cutting-edge of optics, photonics, and imaging innovations. Thank you to NextCorps for hosting this program in the heart of downtown, and to Empire State Development and Finger Lakes Forward for their continued support of developers in Rochester and across New York.”
Assemblymember Harry Bronson said, “The Luminate NY competition continues to be a hub for bringing innovative entrepreneurship and research from around the globe to Rochester. I offer my congratulations to the eighth-round winners for their ingenuity and creativity, which is helping to accelerate our regional economy. I hope we will continue to see these groundbreaking companies make NYS their home.”
Monroe County Executive Adam Bello said, “Monroe County has long been an innovation hub for optics and imaging, thanks to pioneers like George Eastman and Chester Carlson. The winners of Round Eight of the Luminate NY competition now have the incredible opportunity to follow in those footsteps and shape the future of photonics. We extend our sincere gratitude to Governor Hochul for her unwavering commitment to boosting our region as a global leader in the optics, photonics, and imaging fields. Thanks also to Empire State Development for its dedication to nurturing promising startups and helping them reach the next level of growth and commercialization.”
City of Rochester Mayor Malik D. Evans said, “New York State officials and Rochester’s optics, photonics and imaging community deserve credit for supporting and encouraging the next generation of inventors. Not only does Luminate contribute to Rochester’s culture of innovation, it shines a light on new talent and new possibilities, benefiting the global economy. When statistics suggest the U.S. and the western world are becoming less innovative, NextCorps and our talented finalists prove that we can buck the trend.”
For additional information about Luminate NY, visit: https://luminate.org/.
For additional information about NextCorps, visit: https://nextcorps.org/.
Accelerating Economic Development in the Finger Lakes
Today’s announcement complements “Finger Lakes Forward,” the region’s comprehensive strategy to generate robust economic growth and community development. The regionally designed plan focuses on investing in key industries including photonics, agriculture and food production, and advanced manufacturing. More information is available here.
About Empire State Development
Empire State Development is New York's chief economic development agency, and promotes business growth, job creation, and greater economic opportunity throughout the state. With offices in each of the state's 10 regions, ESD oversees the Regional Economic Development Councils, supports broadband equity through the ConnectALL office, and is growing the workforce of tomorrow through the Office of Strategic Workforce Development. The agency engages with emerging and next generation industries like clean energy and semiconductor manufacturing looking to grow in New York State, operates a network of assistance centers to help small businesses grow and succeed, and promotes the state's world class tourism destinations through I LOVE NY. For more information, please visit esd.ny.gov, and connect with ESD on LinkedIn, Facebook and X.
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/263b93d3-37b8-4237-a4e0-99f0625d95cf
Media Contact: Shari Voorhees-Vincent | Shari.Voorhees-Vincent@esd.ny.gov | (585) 399-7055 Press Office | pressoffice@esd.ny.gov | (800) 260-7313 Holly Barrett | Luminate | holly.barrett@nextcorps.org | (585) 645-9576
Luminate NY Round Eight Winner
Pensievision Wins "Company of the Year" at Luminate NY OPI Competition
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