Dr. Augustine Urbas is Co-Founder and CTO at Ravee Optics, a Dayton, Ohio-based deep tech startup pioneering ultra-compact laser communication terminals for small satellites using silicon wafer-based meta-optics.

Augustine earned a B.A. in Physics from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. in Polymer Physics from MIT, before spending decades as the Optical Materials Research Lead at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL).

With 30 years of R&D experience and a track record managing programs exceeding $250M, Augustine led a revolutionary metaoptics program at AFRL that directly seeded the core technology behind Ravee Optics.

Augustine co-founded Ravee Optics alongside CEO Piyush Shah, leveraging their 10-year collaboration history to commercialize AFRL-licensed meta-optics technology for the satellite communications market.

Ravee Optics has raised a $6M seed round and is targeting an in-orbit demonstration by early 2028, with its terminals reducing laser comm hardware from 20kg to just 2kg and enabling connectivity for over 50,000 smaller-class satellites.