Founded in 2016, by brothers Mattias and Timothy Scheek, CEO and CTO, respectively, Mayht was targeting the consumer electronics and automotive speaker market through technology licensing, while having conversations with global tech companies to showcase its technology. Following CES 2022, Mayht received significant interest from multiple companies in direct result of the demonstration promoted during and after the show.
"We believe we are at the beginning of an exciting journey which will revolutionize how consumers can experience high quality sound and are excited at what the future may bring," stated Max van den Berg, Mayht Chief Commercial Officer, in the acquisition announcement.
Until this announcement, Mayht was pursuing licensing of its highly compact, powerful speaker driver topology, Heartmotion, which promises to increased speaker bass performance in shallow and more compact form factors. The Mayht driver is a single driver with two membranes moving in opposing directions to increase air displacement capability and prevent mechanical resonance of the enclosure. The Dutch company pitched its technology with demonstrations of portable speakers, soundbars, and portable PA and musical instrument systems, allowing twice the perceived volume with increase bass response from half the size/volume of current speaker designs.
Speakers that use the Heartmotion technology platform can also offer important reductions in energy consumption, as they will require less power than comparable same size audio devices currently on the market. That was certain to appeal to all the large tech players, and Sonos understood that potential. Under the terms of the acquisition agreement Sonos acquired Mayht for approximately $100 million in existing cash on hand.
"Mayht’s breakthrough in transducer technology will enable Sonos to take another leap forward in our product portfolio," says Patrick Spence, CEO. "This strategic acquisition gives us more incredible people, technology and intellectual property that will further distinguish the Sonos experience, enhance our competitive advantage, and accelerate our future roadmap."
"We are very excited and proud to become a part of Sonos," says Mattias Scheek, CEO of Mayht. "Our dream has always been to set a new standard in the audio industry. The integration of our technology into Sonos products will further revolutionize high quality sound."
Six Years as Start-Up
The story of Mayht begins with brothers Timothy and Mattias Scheek, who were fascinated with the rumbling effect of their father’s subwoofer. Inspired by this, at the tender age of 7 and 9, they playfully created their first speakers. During their studies (Technical University of Delft and HKU, Acoustics & Product Sound Design in The Netherlands), in 2013, Timothy and Mattias established their first high end speaker company, Scheek Loudspeakers. In 2016, they launched Mayht Technologies with the support of the TU Delft, and the financial input of a regional fund (UNIIQ).
In late 2017, Max van den Berg joined as a co-founder and chief commercial officer, bringing valuable international experience in consumer electronics. As a groundbreaking start-up, Mayht received interest and VC investment from Forward.One and key industry experts, some of which were impressed by its transducer technology and have accepted to join the company advisory and operational boards. In 2020, with the unveiling of the Heartmotion technology platform, and again in 2021, Mayht received additional investment, including from Swedish company Exeger, and music producer and DJ Martin Garrix, leading the company's latest funding round of investment and taking its Series A round to nearly USD $10 million.
Among the members of the advisory board are Piet Coelewij, which has worked for Sonos as Managing Director EMEA during five years, and Hilmar Lehnert, who worked for Sonos during nearly 10 years, as Audio Technology Manager in the company's engineering offices in Boston, MA, having led the company's transducer design and signal processing.
www.mayht.com
www.sonos.com
