RealWear, the pioneer and leader of industrial extended reality (XR) wearables, is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Chris Parkinson as RealWear’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Dr. Parkinson, co-founder, and former CTO of RealWear®, is the visionary mind behind the HMT-1® flagship headset that started the RealWear story in 2016. The HMT-1 was RealWear’s first industrial head-mounted tablet computer on the market and catapulted RealWear into the spotlight for delivering an Extended Reality (XR) solution that worked for frontline teams who required the use of both hands to do their work and whose operations demanded 100% equipment uptime.
Dr. Parkinson brings a wealth of knowledge, experience, and passion to his new role as CEO. As the primary inventor of the RealWear HMT-1 headset and the driving force behind its hands-free user experience, Dr. Parkinson has been at the forefront of revolutionising the way frontline professionals interact with technology. His specialty lies in developing hands-free computing built on high-accuracy, noise-robust speech recognition, and gesture-controlled user experiences.
Before co-founding RealWear, Dr. Parkinson led the technology development of the groundbreaking “Golden-i” series of head-mounted computers, which laid the foundation for RealWear HMT-1 as well as today’s flagship product. This transformative work for Kopin Corporation covered 9 years of research and development, and resulted in more than 100 patents around head-worn computing and 5 generations of headset devices. In 2015, he embarked on his entrepreneurial journey, forming the company that eventually became RealWear, to realise his ambitions of introducing ruggedised hands-free computing to the world.
Dr. Parkinson holds a Bachelor’s degree (with honours) in Chemistry from the University of Manchester, UK, and a PhD in Computational Chemistry and Moleculars, also from the University of Manchester. Moving to the USA in 1996, he has remained a prominent figure in the Northwest, currently residing in the Tri-Cities area in Washington state.
In a statement regarding his new position, Dr. Parkinson said, “I am deeply honoured and excited to have been appointed as the CEO of RealWear. Our mission is clear: to empower frontline professionals with cutting-edge XR wearables and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven solutions that enhance their productivity and overall work experience. It is essential to provide them with the same or even better level of technological support that has been enjoyed by knowledge workers for years.”
Dr. Parkinson’s vision for RealWear centres around a commitment to delivering solutions, not just hardware, that effortlessly integrate into the everyday routines of frontline professionals in manufacturing, automotive and healthcare. With an unwavering focus on company growth and innovation, he is determined to continue enhancing RealWear’s product offerings and expanding the company’s reach in various industries.
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“Two of my biggest priorities will be incorporating AI and sustainability into everything that we do,” continued Dr. Parkinson. “We will do this through our own engineering teams and through our many incredible partners who are participating in our growing App Marketplace.”
Under Dr. Parkinson’s leadership, RealWear is poised to strengthen its position as an industry partner and deliver XR wearable solutions that are tailored to the specific needs of frontline professionals, promoting safer, more efficient, and more productive work environments.
Dr. Parkinson succeeds Mr. Andrew Chrostowski, who has retired from his position. The board of directors expresses its heartfelt appreciation to Chrostowski for his exceptional leadership and dedication.
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