ten years in the dark

we started in san francisco in 2016 with a pinhole lens machined from solid aluminum. no sensor, no software — just optics reduced to physics, funded by the people who wanted it. that first kickstarter set the pattern for everything since: design it ourselves, build it properly, sell it directly.

a decade later, the same house does research, design, manufacturing, and marketing in one continuous line. that vertical reach is the point. when the ai team sits next to the optics bench and the optics bench sits next to the production line, a product doesn't get diluted on its way to the customer.

our campaigns have raised more than $10m from backers — including night storm x1's record-breaking $1.7m kickstarter and the 15,000+ backers behind the x3. crowdfunding isn't a funding trick for us; it's how an instrument meets its first and toughest audience.