Mark Morgenthaler is a seasoned entrepreneur, inventor, and multidisciplinary leader with a career spanning engineering, corporate management, and business development. He holds a B.S. and M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, as well as a J.D. from the University of San Francisco, combining technical expertise with legal insight. Mark’s career highlights include:
CEO of Surfnet Communications (2003-Present): Founded and led one of California’s leading fixed wireless broadband providers, driving infrastructure expansion and securing significant grants to enhance connectivity in underserved areas.
- CEO of Lionhearth Technologies: Developed network-centric command and control systems for DARPA and the U.S. Army, earning the SBIR Technology of the Year Award in 1999.
- President of Crystal River Engineering: Oversaw a turnaround that increased sales by 250% and profits by 800%, culminating in a $6.5 million acquisition by Aureal Semiconductor.
- Director of Marketing and Business Development at Trimble Navigation: Played a pivotal role in growing the company’s revenue from $5 million to $250 million annually.
- Engineer at Hewlett-Packard: Contributed to innovations in RISC architecture, multimedia processing, and navigation systems.
Mark is also an accomplished inventor with three patents to his name:
- Fine Positioning Beam Director System (Patent No. 4480913) – A light spectroscopy innovation at Hewlett-Packard that influenced the utility of spectroscopy for the inchoate biotechnology at the time.
- Direct Flash Analog-to-Digital Converter and Method (Patent No. 4386339) – A breakthrough in ADC technology.
- Virtual Command Post (Patent No. 6215498) – A system for collaborative virtual environments used in military applications.
As a serial entrepreneur and inventor, Mark sits on the Board of Directors at Phaser Solutions where he advises on small business operations, innovation, growth strategies, and technology development.