CO-FOUNDER/CEO
MOVANDI
WHY: Immigrated from Iran after Islamic revolution with her brother Reza; they co-founded Innovent Systems, which was bought by Broadcom where they became star engineers. Then in 2016 the siblings co-founded Irvine-based Movandi, a wireless technology equipment maker looking to expand deployment of the 5G advances for indoor and outdoor use; she is the company’s CEO. Says company’s proprietary chipsets, antennas and software help overcome coverage gaps and reduce deployment costs by eliminating the need for fiber.
IN THE NEWS: In October 2025, Irvine-based Movandi said it had raised $40M in strategic funding to accelerate the global deployment of high-performance connectivity infrastructure across 5G, satellite communications, and fixed wireless access. The funding round was led by a $20M investment from ITHCA Group, the sovereign-backed technology investment firm based in Oman. In February 2025 Movandi partnered with Japan-based Kyocera to expand 5G millimeter wave (mmWave) coverage using its smart repeater technology. She is credited with 300+ patents to her name.
NOTABLE: Named to Inc.’s Female Founders 200, which honors the women building the companies of tomorrow; recognized for pushing boundaries and besting the competition, including her leadership and innovation that allows for the expansion of 5G mmWave services at 50 percent lower costs through partnerships with top companies, such as Verizon, Qualcomm and NXP.
IN HER WORDS: “I do see a lot of smart, talented women who are not getting enough exposure.”
Rofougaran Siblings from Iran Run Wireless
Powerhouse Movandi
IRVINE — Reza Rofougaran is the other half of the sibling duo that co-founded Movandi in 2016 with his sister Maryam Rofougaran.
Earlier, the siblings co-founded Innovent Systems, which was bought by Broadcom where they became star engineers.
Reza’s work “literally changed the radio frequency industry,” according to Broadcom co-founder and chairman Henry Samueli.
That’s “especially if you look at smartphones. It would not be possible to fit that in the palm of your hand” without Rofougaran’s work to get the necessary RF technology onto a single chip, Samueli said in a late 2019 video for Movandi.
Movandi says its proprietary chipsets, antennas and software help overcome coverage gaps and reduce deployment costs by eliminating the need for fiber.
While Maryam has more than 300 patents to her name, her brother Reza has more than 1,000.
Reza won an OCBJ 2020 Innovator of the Year Award. Reza was honored for developing and creating game changing products and services, while demonstrating brilliance and leadership in innovation.
He said at the time that the company’s BeamXR “smart active repeated” is “designed to penetrate physical barriers in urban environments and amplify mmWave coverage in public spaces and inside buildings, enabling leading carriers like Verizon to expand live 5G networks that will change how we live, work, play and learn.”
Also, in 2020 he received the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2020 for his scientific achievements.
—Kevin Costelloe
