VisionSpring founder and EYElliance co-founder joins Innovega’s Executive Advisor Brain Trust as the company advances toward commercialization.
SAN DIEGO – September 18, 2026 – Innovega, Inc., a developer of lightweight, AI-enabled smart glasses designed to enhance functional vision for people living with vision loss, today announced that Dr. Jordan Kassalow has joined the company as an Executive Advisor.
Dr. Kassalow is one of the most recognized social entrepreneurs in global vision care. He founded VisionSpring, which pioneered market-based approaches to expanding access to affordable eyeglasses in underserved communities, and co-founded EYElliance, a global coalition working to accelerate access to eyeglasses at scale. He is also an investor in Innovega.
“Jordan has spent much of his career answering a question that matters enormously to us: how do you take something that can genuinely improve people’s lives and get it to the people who need it?” said Steve Willey, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Innovega. “He understands vision care, entrepreneurship, access and what it takes to build something at scale. We are very fortunate to have him involved as we move toward commercialization.”
Innovega is developing conventionally styled smart eyewear for people whose functional vision needs are not adequately addressed by traditional eyeglasses or existing assistive technologies. The company is advancing its first commercial smart-glasses platform toward launch in 2027 while continuing development of its broader Vision Intelligence Platform, including future smart contact-lens and combined lens-and-eyewear technologies.
“What drew me to Innovega is that this is not technology for technology’s sake,” said Dr. Kassalow. “There is a very real group of people living with vision loss who have had too few practical options. Innovega has the opportunity to build a strong commercial business while making a meaningful difference in people’s everyday lives. I am excited to help the team think through how we make that happen at scale.”
As Executive Advisor, Dr. Kassalow will advise Innovega on commercialization, vision-care partnerships, market access, strategic relationships and impact strategy. His appointment is part of Innovega’s effort to build a small, highly engaged Executive Advisor Brain Trust whose members actively challenge the company’s thinking, open doors and help execute.
His appointment also strengthens Innovega’s ability to explore how commercial innovation can draw on different forms of capital to scale its impact. Conventional equity and strategic investment remain central to the company’s growth strategy, while impact-oriented and philanthropic capital may offer complementary pathways for expanding the reach of technologies capable of producing measurable social benefit.
“Commercial investment remains fundamental to building Innovega,” said Tamer Makary, Head of Corporate Development at Innovega. “But Innovega also sits where technology, human impact and innovative capital can meet. Jordan’s experience can help us engage impact-oriented and philanthropic capital thoughtfully, alongside conventional equity, to help the technology reach farther and faster.”
About Dr. Jordan Kassalow
Dr. Jordan Kassalow, is an optometrist and Managing Partner at Drs. Farkas, Kassalow, Resnick & Associates in Manhattan, a social entrepreneur and global leader in expanding access to vision care. He founded VisionSpring to develop sustainable approaches to providing affordable eyeglasses to people in underserved markets and later co-founded EYElliance, a coalition focused on accelerating access to eyeglasses globally. Over the course of his career, Dr. Kassalow has worked at the intersection of eye care, entrepreneurship, public health, philanthropy and international development, with a particular focus on creating scalable models capable of reaching populations historically excluded from traditional vision-care systems. He has been recognized internationally for his work in social entrepreneurship and global vision access.
About Innovega
Innovega, Inc. is developing next-generation smart eyewear and vision technologies designed to enhance functional vision and help people living with visual impairment regain greater independence in everyday life. Its platform combines advanced optics, lightweight smart glasses, digital displays and personalized visual enhancement, with a longer-term roadmap incorporating AI-enabled vision applications and proprietary smart contact-lens technology.