Santa Fe - In November 2018, iBeam Materials and five other companies were awarded New Mexico Small Business Innovation Research (NM SBIR) Grants from the New Mexico Economic Development Department's Office of Science and Technology.

iBeam Materials is a technology company, founded in 2011 and based in Santa Fe, which primarily focuses on photonics. They received a $50,000 NM SBIR grant, used in part toward outreach efforts to strategic partners and investors. This outreach included an article in the industry trade journal Compound Semiconductor, and they were featured in the February issue on the cover and in the editorial of the magazine. This and other publicity increased awareness of their research and capabilities.

"New Mexico provides all forms of economic development and technical assistance to startup tech companies," Cabinet Secretary Alicia J. Keyes said. "The grant to iBeam Materials is clearly helped the firm gain credibility and leverage private investment, which will bring higher paying jobs to the state."

“The New Mexico SBIR Matching grant helped us immensely to fund us in between our projects," said iBeam Materials Founder and President Vladimir Matias. "it facilitated our ability to generate media attention and continue to raise more funding.”

Thanks to their efforts, innovative approach, and the publicity they purchased using grant funds, iBeam Materials is one of a select few companies globally attracting Samsung Ventures' strategic investments in the microLED space. This small local start-up is now poised for accelerated growth and expanded product development.

This success has also allowed iBeam Materials to remain in New Mexico, retaining and growing high-wage jobs and to seek additional future state funding.