Current board member and cloud, AI/ML, and datacom tech leader Brad Booth to become CEO 

March 25, 2024, Seattle, WA — NLM Photonics announces that current board member Brad Booth will step into the CEO role, replacing co-founder Gerard Zytnicki, who will stay in a leadership role as Chief Operating Officer and continue serving on the Board of Directors as Chairperson. 

“We are excited about the places Brad can take NLM,” says Zytnicki. “His years of expertise in cloud and AI/ML couldn’t come at a better time as we propel NLM’s high-efficiency modulator technology toward commercialization.” 

Booth is a distinguished technology strategy and development leader, and influential in industry consortia and standardization. He is passionate about NLM’s mission of developing energy-efficient data transport technologies through photonic integration. 

“The communications industry has made incredible advances, and with the explosive growth of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and quantum computing. The need to move data, whether within a system, a rack, a data center, or worldwide, requires the ability to do that in the most energy-efficient manner,” states Booth. “NLM’s silicon-organic hybrid technology built upon existing silicon platforms will permit the next generation of products to achieve higher data rates with improved energy efficiency. I look forward to working with this incredible team to show the industry what NLM can do for them.” 

Booth served at Meta Platforms and Microsoft Azure, where he focused on developing next-generation optical connectivity solutions for Cloud and AI data centers. Previously, he worked at Dell, Intel, and Bell-Northern Research. Booth led the formation of the Ultra Ethernet Consortium, the Ethernet Technology Consortium, the Consortium for On-Board Optics, and the Ethernet Alliance. He is well-known in the networking industry and has received awards for his contributions to the industry and networking standards. 

These changes in Booth’s and Zytnicki’s roles will round out NLM’s executive team. In January, they brought on financial and organizational growth leader Vijay Raghavan as Chief Financial Officer. Co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer Dr. Lewis E. Johnson will transition to the role of Chief Technology Officer to recognize the company’s increased focus on product and commercial R&D partnerships.  

The company believes this executive team will prepare it well for scaling commercial partnerships, technology development, and Series A fundraising efforts to finance this next stage of growth. 

About NLM Photonics    
NLM Photonics is based in Seattle and develops cutting-edge photonics solutions for transforming networking, computing, and sensing alongside our global partners. Follow us at nlmphotonics.com and on LinkedIn @nlm-photonics. 

Media Contact 
Erica McGillivray   
Communication Director   
[email protected]