France-based defence group Thales has used its corporate venturing unit to take a 20% stake in MultiX, a maker of X-ray machines for airport security.
Thales Corporate Ventures’ purchase of a fifth of MultiX follows its launch in October by Jacques Doremus and Patrick Radisson, both previous employees at Thales Group, with support from the French atomic energy agency, Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique (CEA).
Thales Electron Devices and CEA had developed x-ray detectors for medical imaging applications and devices to detect illicit substances. These technologies are now part of MultiX’s portfolio.
Marko Erman, senior vice-president of research and technology at Thales, said: "It’s particularly gratifying to see technologies that were first developed at Thales now being exploited by such a groundbreaking company as MultiX. Thales’s proactive engagement with the innovation ecosystem involves interacting with public research bodies as well as smaller innovation-driven companies. In the years to come, we intend to support MultiX’s global market development as the evolving regulatory context continues to drive growth in demand."
