IQ
IQ Inc. is a Monroeville, PA-based custom software development and consulting firm, founded in 1994, that delivers full-stack, cloud, IoT, and embedded engineering to regulated industries including medical devices, healthcare, energy, railway, automotive, robotics, and defense, and is now a subsidiary of Critical Software following its early 2026 acquisition.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1994
- HeadquartersMonroeville, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What IQ does
IQ Inc. is a Pittsburgh-based custom software development and consulting firm founded in 1994 by Barbara VanKirk, with operations spanning full-stack web, mobile, IoT, embedded, and cloud engineering across regulated verticals including medical devices, healthcare, energy (nuclear and fossil fuels), railway, automotive, robotics, manufacturing, and aerospace and defense. The company delivers work through end-to-end project engagements and staff augmentation, with a stated emphasis on FDA, DoD, and safety-critical compliance expertise that the firm claims shortens development cycles relative to generalist vendors. Notable productized offerings include the MidasVIEW medication waste disposal and auditing system (HL7-integrated, 360-degree camera, AWS cloud platform) developed with Omnicell, and the PREAC Risk & Reliability platform for the Department of Defense, alongside a tablet-based Modbus TCP/IP valve control interface for oil and gas operations.
The business model is custom, quote-based professional services sold through a sales-led, consultative enterprise motion targeting engineering, quality, and executive stakeholders. Named customers include Omnicell, the U.S. Department of Defense, Hitachi, pathVu, SIE (Summit Medical), and undisclosed oil and gas operators; healthcare and medical devices plus government and defense are treated as primary verticals. Marketing is dominated by content and thought leadership on the company blog, organic social channels (LinkedIn, X, Instagram), and Pittsburgh Technology Council community engagement.
IQ operates from a single U.S. headquarters in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, with a distributed workforce that expanded post-pandemic across Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Virginia, and Maryland. In early 2026, IQ was acquired by Portugal-headquartered Critical Software and became part of the broader Critical Ecosystem to scale U.S. presence and engineering capacity across regulated industries.
IQ firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- IQ
- Legal name
- IQ Inc.
- Website
- https://iq-inc.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1994
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- IQ Inc. is a Monroeville, PA-based custom software development and consulting firm, founded in 1994, that delivers full-stack, cloud, IoT, and embedded engineering to regulated industries including medical devices, healthcare, energy, railway, automotive, robotics, and defense, and is now a subsidiary of Critical Software following its early 2026 acquisition.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
IQ industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Custom Software Development Services
- akta.pro primary industry
- AI/ML Engineering & Model Development Services (BPAEAHAF)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Audit, Explainability & Accountability Tooling (traceability, reporting) (HDAAAKAL)
Keywords
Where IQ is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Monroeville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
IQ business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Custom Software Development Services: End-to-end software development services including full-stack development, systems integration, QA testing, and certification support. Revenue generated through project-based engagements and staff augmentation.
- Staff Augmentation: Providing skilled engineers (developers and testers) embedded into client teams. Flexible scaling from single specialists to integrated teams.
- Consulting Services: Strategy and consulting services including digital transformation planning, cloud strategy, enterprise architecture, and technology due diligence.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels7 records
IQ product offering
Product offeringCore offering
IQ Inc. is a custom software development company and management consulting firm that delivers end-to-end software development services—including full-stack development, systems integration, QA testing, and certification support—across regulated industries such as medical devices, energy, defense, automotive, railway, robotics, and manufacturing. The firm also produces bespoke enterprise platforms including the MidasVIEW medication waste disposal and auditing system (HL7-integrated, 360-degree HD camera, AWS cloud) and the PREAC Department of Defense reliability modeling platform.
Product overview
IQ is a custom software development company and consulting firm offering end-to-end software development services since 1994. The company operates as a services-based organization rather than a product platform, providing custom software development, QA testing, cloud infrastructure, and big data analytics as distinct service offerings. Notable products include MidasVIEW (medication waste disposal and auditing system with HL7 hospital integration), and PREAC (Department of Defense reliability modeling platform). In early 2026, IQ was acquired by Critical Software to expand its U.S. presence. IQ serves industries including medical devices, healthcare, energy, transportation/railway, automotive, robotics, aerospace, and defense.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- MidasVIEW Medication Waste Disposal and Auditing System An end-to-end medication waste disposal and auditing system that combines 360-degree high-definition camera technology with patient and medication information systems (HL7) to provide verifiable oversight of controlled drug disposal. Targets hospital and pharmacy clients seeking FDA-compliant drug diversion risk elimination.
- PREAC (Platform for Risk and Reliability) A secure and flexible platform for modeling, calculating, and predicting the reliability of complex Department of Defense systems (radar platforms, mission-critical equipment), featuring FMEA analysis capabilities, Docker containerization, and secure deployment for defense environments.
- Custom Software Development Services End-to-end custom software development covering full-stack development, systems integration, and certification support delivered across multiple platforms (Web, IoT, Mobile, Embedded Software) for regulated-industry enterprise clients.
- Quality Assurance and Testing Services Rigorous QA and testing services compliant with industry regulations and quality specifications, including detailed documentation standards and use case validation; serves enterprise clients in regulated industries.
- Cloud and Infrastructure Services Cloud-native application development and infrastructure services leveraging AWS and Microsoft Azure platforms, focused on scalability and resilience for enterprise clients.
- Big Data and Analytic Services Data mining and analytics services that integrate disparate data sources into coherent databases for informed decision-making, including simulation and mathematical modeling for energy and defense clients.
- Staff Augmentation Services Flexible staff augmentation services providing skilled engineers and testers embedded into client workflows, scaling from single specialists to fully integrated development teams.
Quantifiable outcome
- Reduced deployed tablets by half through unified valve control interface
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use IQ
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments8 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
IQ technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature3 records
IQ partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Critical SoftwarecoreCritical Software completed acquisition of IQ Inc. in early 2026. IQ Inc. is now part of the broader Critical Ecosystem, strengthening Critical Software's U.S. market presence and engineering capabilities as part of its strategy to build a global engineering organization. IQ brings expertise in healthcare, medical devices, mobility, energy, robotics, aerospace, and defense sectors.
- FraxcoreFrax and IQ partnered to launch KRWQ, the first Korean won stablecoin on the Base blockchain. This is the first multichain won-denominated stablecoin designed for global DeFi applications, operating via LayerZero's interoperability standards. Not marketed to Korean residents.
- Pittsburgh Technology CouncilminorActive member of Pittsburgh Technology Council. Company participates in and sponsors PTC events including Tech 50 Awards, Women in Tech initiatives, and various technology community events.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
IQ competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- InfoVision: Mid-size IT services firm providing custom software development, digital transformation, and QA services with strong healthcare and emerging-tech practices. Comparable size, vertical mix, and delivery model to IQ.
- ScienceSoft: Mid-size custom software development and IT consulting firm with healthcare, manufacturing, and energy practices. Comparable in scale, vertical focus, and end-to-end engineering service offerings.
- Cprime: Custom software development and consulting firm with comparable scale to IQ, offering Agile development, cloud, and enterprise software services to regulated industries. Similar size and GTM motion.
- SoftServe: Mid-size IT services and consulting firm specializing in software engineering, cloud, IoT, and regulated industries including healthcare and medical devices. Closely comparable to IQ in size, vertical mix, and engineering-led delivery model.
Regional players
- NetSol Technologies: Engineering services firm serving automotive, healthcare, and finance verticals. Comparable software development/IT services capabilities but with stronger international footprint; relevant peer for IQ's automotive and regulated-industry work.
Broad incumbents
- Critical Software: Parent company of IQ Inc. since early 2026; Portugal-headquartered engineering services firm specializing in safety-critical, mission-critical, and regulated-industry software. Direct overlap with IQ in medical devices, aerospace/defense, energy, automotive, and railway verticals.
- Slalom: Consulting and technology services firm with strong healthcare/life sciences and manufacturing verticals. Comparable to IQ's regulated-industry focus and consultative, relationship-led GTM motion.
- GlobalLogic: Large digital engineering services firm (Hitachi-owned) providing custom software development, embedded systems, and QA across regulated industries. Strong overlap with IQ's automotive, healthcare, and industrial IoT engagements, and an indirect peer given the shared Hitachi relationship.
- FPT Software: Large global IT services firm with deep automotive, healthcare, and manufacturing verticals. Comparable to IQ in regulated-industry engineering services but at vastly larger scale and with offshore delivery capability.
- Perficient: U.S.-based digital consultancy and engineering services firm with healthcare, life sciences, and energy practices. Comparable to IQ's medical device and energy segments, though at significantly larger scale (NASDAQ-listed).
Market position
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
IQ social profiles
Digital presenceIQ financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
IQ leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
IQ funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
IQ M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments1 record
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about IQ
What does IQ do?
IQ Inc. is a custom software development company and management consulting firm that delivers end-to-end software development services—including full-stack development, systems integration, QA testing, and certification support—across regulated industries such as medical devices, energy, defense, automotive, railway, robotics, and manufacturing. The firm also produces bespoke enterprise platforms including the MidasVIEW medication waste disposal and auditing system (HL7-integrated, 360-degree HD camera, AWS cloud) and the PREAC Department of Defense reliability modeling platform.
Is IQ a public or private company?
IQ is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was IQ founded?
IQ was founded in 1994. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is IQ based?
IQ is headquartered in Monroeville, United States, in the North America region.
How does IQ make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Custom Software Development Services are the primary driver. The others are staff Augmentation and consulting Services.
Who are IQ's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are InfoVision, ScienceSoft, Cprime and SoftServe. NetSol Technologies is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Critical Software, Slalom, GlobalLogic, FPT Software and Perficient.
Does IQ have an API?
No public API is recorded for IQ.
What industry is IQ in?
IQ's product category is Custom Software Development Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAEAHAF, AI/ML Engineering & Model Development Services, with a secondary code of HDAAAKAL, Audit, Explainability & Accountability Tooling (traceability, reporting).