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Ram Narayanswamy (PhDElEngr’96) has spent more than 30 years pushing the limits of what cameras and sensors can see and how they see it. With a career spanning optics and 3D sensing at organizations like NASA and Intel Corporation, the CU Boulder alumnus and PhD graduate in electrical engineering has spent his career building innovative imaging systems.��

Now a fellow and head of technical marketing at��, Narayanswamy is helping to usher in the next generation of ultra-compact imaging systems through flat optics, also known as meta-optics, advancing lenses in the same way compact discs once revolutionized analog music.

“A vinyl record is analog. A CD is digital,” Narayanswamy said. “Meta-optics does the same for lenses, bringing them into the digital age using materials and manufacturing processes from the semiconductor industry.”

His interest in optics began during his time at NASA’s Langley Research Center, where he worked in a group that conducted research in imaging. After four years at NASA, he decided to pursue a PhD in electrical engineering.

His doctoral research, which was advised by former CU Boulder Professor Kristina M. Johnson, focused on detecting cancer cells in cervical smear slides. This work combined optical signal processing and what would now be called machine vision and artificial intelligence.

“Most medical screening slides are normal and hence a medical professional’s attention examining the slide can fade and miss abnormal cells,” he said. “We developed a system that could flag abnormal cells. With the doctor focusing on just the abnormal cells, the screening test leads to improved decision making and diagnosis.”

That fusion of optical systems and artificial intelligence design laid the foundation for a career that would help define how modern imaging technologies are built and applied.��

Upon completing his PhD, Narayanswamy joined CDM Optics, a CU Boulder spin-out company, often credited with pioneering the field of computational imaging.��

A legacy of innovation and impact

NIL Technology wins the prestigious Prism Award for the NILT metaEye™. (Credit: SPIE Photonics West)

Narayanswamy’s technical accomplishments are as numerous as they are influential. He holds 13 patents; has authored over 40 technical papers and presentations; and helped pioneer technologies like wavefront coding, array cameras and depth sensors.��

In 1991, while at NASA, he co-authored a seminal paper on camera characterization, better known today as the ‘slanted-edge MTF test,’ a worldwide standard to measure camera modulation transfer function. While at Intel Labs, he incubated Intel’s RealSense multi-camera system, which won the Best of Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2015 award.

Most recently, his team at NIL Technology won the�� for the metaEye™, an ultra-compact eye-tracking camera designed for AR/VR glasses.��

Narayanswamy said that the technology could transform user experiences across a wide range of use-cases, including manufacturing, retail, entertainment and health tech.

“Imagine wearing AR glasses that know what you’re looking at,” he said. “In a grocery store, it could show you product info. As a tourist, it could identify cultural and historic landmarks. At a party, it could remind you of someone’s name.”��

In a semiconductor fab setting or a hospital operating theater, he said, it can deliver the relevant information needed to complete the complex tasks. The technology also has other powerful applications in medicine and diagnostics.��

“There’s huge potential in health technology. I can’t share specifics because of proprietary reasons,” he added, “but if you look up eye tracking in medical technology, you’ll find many exciting developments.”

Narayanswamy was key in bringing the camera project to life, not just as a technical expert, but also strategically for broad use in industry.

“My idea was: let’s not just offer nano-optics as a capability; let’s show it in action. We needed a 'show and tell’ moment that would make this science accessible to a broader audience,” he said. “That’s what the metaEyeTM camera does. Metaoptics was no longer just academic, but ready for use commercially.”

What’s next in imaging

Looking ahead, Narayanswamy is excited about the evolution of computational imaging, where lenses, sensors and algorithms are co-designed for future applications.

“Most cameras are still designed like they were in the film era, but today, cameras are digital sensors feeding algorithms. In the future, most camera data won’t be seen by a person since it’ll be analyzed by AI,” he said. “The image becomes data and that data powers decisions.”

From cancer detection and eye tracking to driver safety monitoring and augmented reality, Narayanswamy’s work shows how optics and imaging are reshaping the way we interact with the world.��

Narayanswamy's family bleeds black and gold as they all have graduated from CU. (Credit: Ram ���������ⲹ�Բ��ɲ�����)��

CU Boulder roots and a legacy of giving back

Narayanswamy credits his time at CU Engineering with shaping his engineering and career journey.

“All my work, whether it’s lenses, sensors, algorithms or full camera systems, traces back to my time at the college,” he said.

He remains deeply connected to the college, serving on the Electrical, Computer and Energy Engineering External Advisory Board and previously on the ATLAS Institute’s advisory board. Giving back, he says, is a way to support future engineers and honor the education that empowered his own success.

“I’ve had a great professional and academic career,” Narayanswamy said, “and I want today’s students, who are tomorrow’s leaders, to have the same kind of opportunities I had.”

His commitment to CU extends to his family. All three of his children earned degrees from the University of Colorado��—��ranging from electrical engineering to creative technology & design and music��—��and his wife earned her master’s in computer science before becoming a high school math teacher.

Advice for the next generation

His advice for aspiring engineers is both broad and practical.��

“Don’t restrict yourself. Electrical engineering is foundational since you can go into a wide range of new areas in robotics, aerospace, automotive, medical tech and pretty much anything. The core skills from signal processing, power systems to electromagnetics enable everything digital.”

He referenced how everything digital contains aspects of electrical and computer engineering inside, just like the famous ‘Intel inside’ commercial.

He also encourages students to be lifelong learners.

“This field is always evolving,” he said, “your learning doesn’t end at graduation; it just begins.”