Biography

Dr. Joseph Menaker started his career at the Institute of Economics of the LatvianAcademy of Sciences. He continued his research work at the NYC Department Finance and Taxation after immigrating to the U.S. as a political refugee in 1989. Dr. Menaker’s research topic was the Econometric Modeling of Regional Economies. During his years as a research scientist, Dr. Menaker published over twenty research papers and books, and participated in numerous scientific conferences. In 1993 Dr. Menaker, cofounded ISP Optics Corporation in the State of New York. Soon after, ISP Optics established manufacturing operations in Irvington, New York and Riga, Latvia. Over the years, under the management of Dr. Menaker and Mr. Lifshotz, ISP Optics became one of the world’s leading providers of high-quality infrared optics for military and commercial customers around the globe. In December of 2016, Light Path Technologies (LPTH) acquired ISP Optics. In 2009 Dr. Menaker also cofounded UAV Factory, a leading manufacturer of Class 2 unmanned aerial vehicles. UAV Factory currently employs 80 people and provides its components and platforms to such world-renowned companies as Airbus, Textron, and Boeing. Dr. Menaker actively participates in growing a new generation of young entrepreneurs in Latvia by giving lectures and participating in conferences and panel discussions. Currently Dr. Menaker serves as a Board Member of publicly traded company Light Path Technologies Inc., UAV Factory Ltd., Institute of the European Policy Research of Latvian Academy of Science and the Tsal Kaplun Foundation (a non-for-profit organization).