What Unibrain does

Unibrain is a Greece- and US-based hardware company (founded 1985, 11-50 employees) that develops connectivity products for industrial and multimedia applications. It operates through dual legal entities — Unibrain Inc. in San Ramon, California and Unibrain S.A. in Metamórfosis, Greece. The company's core portfolio spans legacy FireWire (IEEE 1394a/1394b) adapters, cables, repeaters and Fire-i industrial cameras alongside modern USB 3.0/3.1/3.2/4.0 products including Active Optical Cables, hubs, and PCIe host adapters. Its products serve machine vision, industrial imaging, video conferencing, security/surveillance, robotics, and medical machine control markets globally.

Technically, Unibrain differentiates through extended-connectivity solutions: proprietary Active Optical Cables extend USB 3.0 up to 100 meters (versus a standard ~5m limit) with hybrid copper/optical designs for power delivery, high-flex Kevlar-core cables rated for over 10 million bend cycles, glass optical fiber repeaters extending FireWire-800 up to 550 meters, and USB-IF certified USB4 Gen3x2 cables at 40 Gbps. Its Fire-i industrial cameras use Sony progressive-scan CCDs (VGA to 5 MPixels) or Micron CMOS sensors with full IIDC 1.32 compliance, and the company provides Fire-i API/Fire API SDKs and driver support for 1394 host controllers and cameras.

Revenue is generated primarily through one-time hardware product sales at published unit prices ranging from $9 miniature lenses to a $795 GOF Repeater800 kit, with cameras up to ~$1,990 and adapters around $249. Go-to-market is direct-to-customer via its e-commerce storefront (store.unibrain.com), telephone and fax orders, supplemented by a global network of regional distributors and online marketplaces across Europe, Australia/New Zealand, Africa & Middle East, North and South America, and Asia. A secondary line resells Thales Sentinel software licensing solutions as an authorized distributor in Greece and Cyprus.

Name

Unibrain

Legal name

Unibrain Inc.

Website

https://unibrain.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Unibrain develops FireWire (IEEE 1394) and USB 3.0/3.1/3.2/4.0 connectivity hardware — active optical cables, adapters, hubs, repeaters, and industrial cameras — serving machine vision, industrial imaging, surveillance, and medical customers globally via direct e-commerce and regional distributors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Connectivity Hardware

NAICS

Electronic Connector Manufacturing (334417), Other Communications Equipment Manufacturing (33429)

SIC

Electronic Connectors (3678), Computer Communications Equipment (3576)

akta.pro primary industry

Connectors (Power/Signal/High-Speed) (HDAHAOAA)

Keywords

• Industrial connectivity hardware
• Machine vision cameras
• USB active optical cables
• FireWire industrial solutions
• PCIe adapters hubs

Headquarters

HQ city

Metamórfosis

HQ country

Greece

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Hardware Product Sales: One-time hardware sales of FireWire and USB connectivity products including cables, adapters, industrial cameras, hubs, repeaters, and optical fiber solutions for industrial and professional applications

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Unibrain designs, manufactures, and sells FireWire (IEEE 1394a/1394b) and USB 3.0/3.1/3.2/4.0 connectivity hardware for industrial and professional applications, including active optical cables, industrial cameras, PCIe adapters, hubs, and fiber-optic repeaters. The company also distributes Thales Sentinel software licensing solutions in Greece and Cyprus.

Product overview

Unibrain is a global leader in FireWire and USB connectivity solutions, offering a comprehensive portfolio of industrial and professional hardware products. The core product lines include FireWire (IEEE 1394a/1394b) adapters, cables, industrial cameras (Fire-i series in Bonsai, Juniper, and Board camera families), and repeaters; USB 3.0/3.1/3.2/4.0 products including active optical cables, standard cables, hubs, and PCIe adapters; and Thales Sentinel software licensing solutions distributed in select regions. The products serve machine vision, industrial automation, video conferencing, security surveillance, and software protection applications.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Fire-i: FireWire and industrial camera product line including board cameras, digital cameras, and compact cameras.
• GOF Repeater800
• FireWire

Products and services

• Quad Bus USB 3.0 PCI-e Adapter USB 3.0 adapter providing four separate, independent USB 3.0 5 Gbps channels on a single PCI-e x4 slot, built on Renesas uPD720202 chip and PLX PEX8608 PCI-e switch controller, designed for machine vision and professional multi-camera systems.
• Unibrain 4-Port USB 3.0 Hub High performance USB 3.0 hub with 4 downstream Type-A ports and 1 upstream Type-B port supporting up to 5 Gbps data transfer, backwards compatible with USB 2.0/1.1.
• 4-Port Mini USB 3.0 Hub
• High Flex USB 3.0 Active Optical Cables
• USB 3.1 Gen1 Hybrid AOC, Type-A to Type-C Screw Lock
• USB 3.2 Quad Channel PCIe Host Adapter
• USB 4.0 40 Gbps Braided Cable
• GOF Repeater800 1394b Glass Optical Fiber Repeater Kit
• Fire-i Industrial Cameras
• Fire-i 530/830 Bonsai Series Cameras
• Fire-i 580/785 Juniper Series Cameras
• Fire-i Board Cameras
• FireWire Camera Accessories
• Sentinel Software Licensing Solutions (Thales) Thales Sentinel software monetization solutions distributed by Unibrain in Greece and Cyprus, including Sentinel LDK, HL, SL, and CL products for license management, software protection, and license delivery.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature7 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Thales GroupcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 1986Unibrain was Aladdin's HASP product line first authorized distributor since 1986. Following multiple acquisitions (Aladdin – SafeNet – Gemalto – Thales Group), Unibrain is today Thales' partner as a Sentinel software licensing distributor in Greece and Cyprus. Sentinel solutions help organizations license, deliver and protect software with over 10,000 customers in 30 industries across 100+ countries.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Direct peers

• Basler AG: Leading manufacturer of industrial machine-vision cameras and related accessories, serving factory automation, medical, and traffic applications. Direct competitor to Unibrain's Fire-i industrial camera line in the same IIDC/spec-driven industrial imaging market.
• StarTech.com: Broad-line manufacturer of connectivity products including USB hubs, adapters, cables (including AOCs), and industrial connectivity accessories. Direct competitor to Unibrain's USB hub, adapter, and cable catalog across industrial and professional buyers.
• Allied Vision Technologies: Develops industrial machine-vision cameras and embedded vision solutions with broad interface support (GigE Vision, USB3 Vision, CoaXPress). Competes directly with Unibrain's FireWire industrial cameras for the same industrial imaging integrators and OEMs.
• IDS Imaging Development Systems: German manufacturer of industrial cameras (uEye series) and machine-vision software, focused on factory automation, medical, and traffic applications. Closely comparable to Unibrain's Fire-i camera business in use cases and customer profile.
• Newnex Technology Corporation: Specializes in USB, FireWire, and other interface connectivity solutions including active optical cables and industrial-grade cable assemblies. Most directly comparable peer to Unibrain's USB 3.0/3.1 AOC and FireWire cable business serving machine-vision and industrial OEMs.
• Fiberon Technologies: Specializes in active optical cables (USB, DisplayPort, HDMI) and fiber-extension products. Closely comparable to Unibrain's USB 3.0/3.1 hybrid AOC and FireWire fiber-repeater lines, particularly in machine-vision and pro-AV applications.

Broad incumbents

• Teledyne FLIR: Diversified industrial imaging giant offering thermal cameras, machine-vision cameras (including former Point Grey), and components. Overlaps with Unibrain's industrial camera and machine-vision focus as part of a much broader portfolio.
• Corning Incorporated: Global leader in optical fiber, connectivity, and active optical cable solutions (including USB and Thunderbolt). Comparable to Unibrain at the optical-cable and fiber-extension level, but at vastly greater scale and with a much broader communications portfolio.

Regional players

• Watterott Electronic: European distributor and manufacturer of industrial and embedded electronics including machine-vision and connectivity components. Comparable to Unibrain as a regional industrial-channel operator in the European DACH market.

Emerging players

• E-con Systems: Designs and manufactures embedded vision and machine-vision cameras, including USB3 Vision and MIPI CSI-2 cameras. Comparable to Unibrain in the industrial/embedded camera space but with a stronger focus on newer interfaces and embedded systems.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/unibraininc

Compliance7 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Unibrain