PragmatIC appoints Erik Langaker as chair of the board

This appointment comes alongside additional funding of over GBP 13 million (USD 17 million) to support the ongoing production ramp-up, accelerate manufacturing optimization and drive continued product innovation. Langaker will also invest his own funds in the company’s current funding round.

Langaker has an extensive background of developing and commercializing technology businesses, with over 30 years of international experience in private equity and entrepreneurial ventures. He has been an active investor and chair, or board director, in 25 companies. Many are in complementary sectors to PragmatIC, such as his current chair position at Kezzler AS whose patented item-level serialization helps brands combat counterfeit goods, eliminate unauthorized distribution, and improve consumer engagement.

As chair of CMR Surgical, he helped raise more than GBP 250 million (USD 326 million), leading it to an increase in valuation from GBP 30 million (USD 40 million) to well over GBP 1 billion (USD 1.3 billion) while the number of employees increased from around 40 to nearly 500. He brings extensive experience in chairing public companies, most recently as chair of European R&D engineering company Data Respons ASA which was sold to AKKA Technologies SE.

Scott White, CEO of PragmatIC commented: ‘We are delighted to welcome Erik to the board. He brings us valuable experience alongside market-relevant knowledge at a pivotal time, as we scale the business towards our vision of a trillion flexible integrated circuits.’

‘I am honored to join PragmatIC and its talented team of innovators at such an exciting time as they are poised to disrupt the electronics industry as well as the supply side of many consumer goods industries,’ added Erik Langaker. ‘With an increasing focus on and the need for a circular economy and transparent supply chains, PragmatIC is just in time in bringing a cost effective and highly scalable solution to the market. Opportunities in RFID alone have the potential to exceed a trillion units, and I can see immediate possibilities across healthcare, logistics and retail just from within my own network of contacts.’