Kopin Corporation Hires New Executives to Address Growing Wearable Technology Market Opportunities

Kopin Corporation, a leading developer of innovative wearable computing technologies and solutions, today announced the hiring of three new executives to launch and scale the company’s new disruptive technologies in the wearable market.

Stuart Nixdorff, an industry veteran with more than 20 years of experience working with consumer electronics, mobile and wearable technology startups, was named senior vice president of sales and marketing. Paul Baker, the new vice president of business development, is an accomplished creative strategist with more than 20 years’ expertise in transitioning new products and technology from the lab to the marketplace. Dr. Ernesto Martinez-Villalpando, who received his Ph.D. at MIT’s Media Lab and worked at Harvard’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, was appointed special assistant to the CEO.

“With the wearable market heating up, we are putting together a team with a clear track record of driving growth with new technologies in large and emerging markets,” said Dr. John C.C. Fan, CEO. “Stuart, Paul and Ernesto are great additions to this team as we meet the needs of customers in this fast-moving industry. We are delighted with the progress in our transformation and with the market response from our February launch event in Santa Clara.”

Mr. Nixdorff started working on head-mounted wearables in 1997 and has led the launch of a number of innovative products, such as the first CMOS-based digital cameras and cellphone cameras. Previously, he was senior vice president and general manager of AAC’s Smart Accessory Business, where he worked with leading mobile and accessory companies, mobile and consumer electronics OEM customers and global retail partners, including Apple and AT&T, to integrate wearable products into everyday technology.

“Kopin has been the leading technology provider in the smart eyewear market for over 20 years, and now the intersection of the powerful mobile phone ecosystem and our unique enabling technologies will unleash significant growth,” said Nixdorff. “As the wearable ecosystem grows, Kopin is focused on providing new solutions to help our partners develop their own systems more rapidly.”

Mr. Baker will apply his experience in leading new business growth for both startups and large companies to help Kopin advance current customers and establish new relationships and partnerships that drive the adoption of Kopin’s unique visual, verbal, audio and head-gesture command technologies. Before Kopin, Paul was the executive vice president of business development and sales at ZINK Imaging, a mobile technology startup. He also served in several marketing and sales leadership roles during his nearly ten years at Polaroid.

“This is an exciting time in the fast-developing wearable technology market, and I look forward to making Kopin’s technologies an integral part of everyday life in both consumer and commercial applications,” said Baker. “Our OEM partners are realizing the true power of our wearable technologies.”

Dr. Martinez-Villalpando developed state-of-the-art bionic limbs with Professor Herr Hugh at MIT. He will help formulate technology innovation strategies, coordinate new concept headset system demos and engage with new potential partners. “Our concept demos are opening up new possibilities with our partners,” said Martinez-Villalpando. “Kopin’s vast experience in designing wearable headsets will greatly help shorten the development time for our partners.”

About Kopin

Kopin Corporation is a leading developer and provider of innovative wearable technologies and solutions for integration into head-worn computing and display systems by OEM customers. Kopin’s technology portfolio includes ultra-small displays, optics, speech enhancement technology, system and hands-free control software, low-power ASICs, and ergonomically designed smart headset reference systems. Kopin’s proprietary components and technologies are protected by more than 200 global patents and patents pending. For more information, please visit Kopin’s website at www.kopin.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this news release may be considered “forward-looking” statements under the “Safe Harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These include, without limitation, statements relating to the Kopin’s partnership with Olympus Corporation; wearable eyewear is ready to go mainstream; and the Pupil module is a major milestone as it will help our customers realize the dream of smart eyewear for consumers. These statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following: Olympus and Kopin may terminate their relationship, wearable eyewear may not be adopted by consumers, the Pupil may not be producible at a cost which is can be sold at to make a profit, there may be no demand for the Pupil, the Company may be unable to release new products in the coming months, there may be no demand for any products that we develop in the coming months; it may take longer than the Company estimates to develop products; the Company’s products may not be accepted by the market place; there may be issues that prevent the adoption or further development of the Company’s wearable computing technologies; manufacturing, marketing or other issues may prevent either the adoption or acceptance of products; the Company might be adversely affected by competitive products and pricing; new product initiatives and other research and development efforts may be unsuccessful; the Company could experience the loss of significant customers; costs to produce the Company’s products might increase significantly, or yields could decline; and the Company’s customers might be unable to ramp production volumes of its products; and other risk factors and cautionary statements listed in the Company’s periodic reports and registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the 12 months ended December 29, 2012, and the Company’s subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should not place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. The Company undertakes no responsibility to update any of these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this report.