Fariborz Maseeh (Persian: فریبرز مسیح : Farīborz Masīh) is an Iranian-born Iranian-American engineer who works in the field of micro-electro mechanical systems (MEMS). He founded IntelliSense in 1991 and sold it in 2000. He is the founder and managing principal of Surlamer LLC, an investment management firm managing investments in private companies, a diversified portfolio of commercial and residential real estate, and several proprietary traded hedge funds. He has also founded the Kids Institute for Development and Advancement (KIDA) – an Irvine, California, treatment clinic and education facility for autistic children, Orbitron LP – a global macro long-short hedge fund, and The Massiah Foundation – a charitable organization, which Maseeh also acts as president of..

Life and career

Early life and education

Fariborz Maseeh was born in Tehran, Iran, and arrived in Portland, Oregon in his teens. He graduated from Portland State University (PSU) with a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering with honors in structural engineering. He then graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a master's degree. While there, he performed research in the Department of Aeronautics. Maseeh then returned to PSU where he earned another master's degree in Applied Mathematics. Maseeh remained in the Portland area and taught engineering courses at Clackamas Community College. After his family life was stabilized, he ventured to Boston to earn a doctorate degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Once he received his doctorate, Maseeh started working as a senior research scientist at a technology start-up firm in Silicon Valley. He resigned after one year to found IntelliSense.

Technology entrepreneur

Maseeh founded IntelliSense in 1991. IntelliSense was the first company focused on the custom design, development, and manufacturing of next-generation MEMS (microelectromechanical systems) operation and became one of the world's fastest-growing MEMS companies. It was twice named to the New England Technology "Fast 50" and the Forbes' "Fast 500". Maseeh sold IntelliSense in 2000. Following the transaction, Maseeh joined the Corning management team but resigned after a year. Maseeh founded Picoco LLC as well as the Massiah Foundation in 2001.

Community Service

Maseeh has served on numerous boards, including those of the MIT Corporation and Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows. In April 2021, it was announced that he was elected to the Caltech Board of Trustees. He sits on engineering advisory boards at University of Southern California Viterbi School of Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Portland State University. Maseeh is also a former trustee of The Foundation at University of California at Irvine (UCI), former Executive Member of California Council on Science and Technology (CCST), past chairman of the board of directors of Children’s Hospital of Orange County Foundation for Children, and past board member of the Boys and Girls Club of Boston.

Philanthropy

Maseeh takes part in several philanthropic venues. Through the Massiah Foundation, Maseeh utilizes the concept of venture philanthropy, targeting opportunities to invest in entities that will have a lasting and significant social impact per invested capital.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Portland State University

University of California, Irvine

University of Southern California

University of Texas at Austin

Harvard Medical School