Turning R&D Momentum Into Scalable Commercial Success
By 2022, Recogni had established itself as a leader in AI-powered perception systems, driving over $60 million in revenue through groundbreaking R&D. But as demand for its technology surged, Recogni faced a critical challenge: the company’s deep-tech roots and R&D focus were not enough to capture the rapidly expanding commercial opportunity.
To convert rising market interest into real sales and long-term growth, Recogni needed to rapidly scale operations, deepen OEM relationships, and expand into new verticals without losing the technical edge that set it apart.
Scaling operations while maintaining a technical edge.
Risk of Stalling at the Inflection Point
Recogni’s board recognized the risk: without a decisive shift from R&D to commercial execution, the company could stall just as the market was heating up. Maintaining a strong revenue run-rate during this transition was essential—not just to prove commercial viability, but to attract the capital and talent needed for the next phase of growth. The stakes were high: Recogni needed a leader who could drive operational scale, unlock new markets, and sustain momentum through a period of rapid change.
Leadership to Bridge Innovation and Commercialization
To meet this urgent need, Recogni’s board partnered with Christian & Timbers to find a CEO with a proven track record in scaling technology businesses. In 2023, Marc Bolitho—an industry veteran with nearly three decades of experience in automotive systems and AI hardware—was appointed CEO. Bolitho’s expertise in launching high-volume products, building global teams, and forging strategic OEM partnerships positioned him to lead Recogni’s transformation from an R&D powerhouse to a commercial growth engine.
Marc Bolitho leads Recogni’s shift to commercial growth.
High-Growth Commercial Operations Without Missing a Beat
Under Bolitho’s leadership, Recogni executed a seamless transition to commercial scale:
- Secured a $102 million Series C funding round in February 2024, providing the capital to accelerate go-to-market efforts and product innovation.
- Maintained a $50–60 million revenue run-rate entering 2024, proving Recogni could sustain high growth even as it shifted focus from research to large-scale commercial deployment.
- Expanded into new verticals such as data centers and generative AI, highlighted by the launch of Recogni Scorpio—a 1 PetaFLOPS-class, low-power AI inference accelerator—demonstrating the adaptability and scalability of Recogni’s core technology.
From Inflection Point to Commercial Acceleration
- 2022: Surpassed $60M in revenue, signaling readiness for commercial expansion.
- 2023: Appointed Marc Bolitho as CEO to lead the shift from R&D to commercial operations.
- February 2024: Closed $102M Series C funding round, fueling further growth.
- 2024: Launched Recogni Scorpio, entering new high-growth markets.
- 2024: Maintained $50–60M revenue run-rate, validating the success of the commercial transition.
Urgency Met With Execution
Christian & Timbers’ involvement was instrumental in Recogni’s successful transition. With over 2,000 CEO and board placements for global corporations and 5,000+ C-suite assignments completed across the tech sector, their experience in executive search is both deep and highly relevant.
Their AI-powered, science-based search process enabled a fast, precise match for Recogni’s unique needs at a critical moment. By helping Recogni secure a leader with the right blend of technical and commercial expertise, Christian & Timbers played a key role in ensuring the company could maintain its momentum, capitalize on new opportunities, and scale its impact across multiple high-growth markets.
AI-driven search delivers leadership for rapid company growth.
Recogni’s ability to maintain a robust revenue run-rate while shifting from R&D to high-growth commercial operations is a testament to the company’s strategic vision and decisive leadership. By addressing the urgent need to convert innovation into scalable sales, Recogni not only secured major funding but also positioned itself as a commercial powerhouse ready to lead in automotive, data center, and AI markets.
