Emotiv
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Bioinformatics, Technology, Wearable devices |
| Founded | 2011 |
| Founder | Tan Le, Geoff Mackellar |
| Headquarters | San Francisco , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Tan Le (CEO), Geoff Mackellar (CTO) |
| Products | Neuroheadsets (EPOC, EPOC+, Insight), software development kits, software, mobile applications, data analytics services |
Emotiv Inc. is a privately owned company operating in the bioinformatics and technology sector, focusing on wearable electroencephalography (EEG) devices. Their product range includes neuroheadsets, software development kits (SDKs), various software solutions, mobile applications, and data analytics services. Established in 2011 by entrepreneurs Tan Le (CEO) and Geoff Mackellar (CTO), Emotiv's main office is located in San Francisco, U.S.A., with additional branches in Sydney, Hanoi, and Ho Chi Minh City.
History
In 2003, Tan Le co-founded Emotiv Systems in Australia alongside Nam Do, Allan Snyder, and Neil Weste. This initiative led to the creation of the EPOC neuroheadset in 2009, recognized as one of the pioneering portable EEG devices available commercially. In 2010, Tan Le parted ways to launch Emotiv Lifesciences Inc. in the United States with Geoffrey Mackellar; this entity was rebranded as Emotiv Inc. in December 2013.
The original EPOC headset earned acclaim for providing EEG data of research-grade quality, with independent validations from institutions such as Macquarie University and Flinders University confirming its signal quality rivaled that of other professional research equipment.
To broaden its offerings, Emotiv introduced the Emotiv Insight, a 5-channel EEG headset designed for consumers interested in brain fitness and cognitive enhancement. The company successfully secured $1.64 million via a Kickstarter campaign, surpassing its initial $100,000 target by a significant margin, and was honored with an Edison Award for innovation in 2014.
In 2013, the company unveiled the EPOC+, a wireless EEG system featuring 14 channels aimed at professional research and industrial users. This enhanced model incorporated sophisticated electronics such as 9-axis inertial measurement units, Bluetooth Smart connectivity, and improved battery management.
By October 2015, the Emotiv Insight became widely available to consumers. That year also saw Emotiv join the Disney/Techstars Accelerator program, where it demonstrated its technology during Demo Day to increase market presence and attract strategic investors.
Current headset models
Emotiv Inc. introduced the EPOC+ in 2013 as a wireless EEG headset geared toward research applications. It offers 14 channels using saline-based wet sensors instead of conventional adhesive gels. The device includes two reference electrodes positioned at P3 and P4 and captures both EEG signals and 9-axis motion data transmitted wirelessly via Bluetooth.
The Emotiv Insight, launched in 2015 for consumer use, is a wireless EEG device with five channels focused on monitoring frontal, temporal, and parieto-occipital brain regions. It utilizes proprietary hydrophilic polymer sensors that absorb moisture from skin and ambient air, making it suitable for daily brain monitoring and cognitive training.
Software and SDK
Emotiv provides the free Insight App to track emotional states alongside paid downloadable games like Arena that offer mental command interaction experiences. Their SDK for the EPOC headset is divided into Community and Premium tiers, supporting a developer base exceeding 70,000 members worldwide.
The EPOC+ model is specifically designed for research purposes and brain-computer interface projects, with EEG data accessible through Emotiv’s Pure.EEG subscription platform.
Controversy
Emotiv imposes additional fees for access to unprocessed data and limits compatibility of third-party applications with their USB dongles, even though the data transmitted between the headset and dongle is not encrypted. Despite these restrictions, several open-source initiatives have succeeded in creating software capable of retrieving raw data from the headset.