Liquid Instruments is a technology company.
Liquid Instruments has raised $37.0M across 2 funding rounds.
Liquid Instruments has raised $37.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Liquid Instruments has raised $37.0M in total across 2 funding rounds.
Liquid Instruments's investors include Acorn Capital, Alumni Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Lockheed Martin Ventures.
# Liquid Instruments: Redefining Test and Measurement Through Software
Liquid Instruments builds software-defined test and measurement platforms that replace traditional hardware-based instruments with reconfigurable, FPGA-powered devices.[1] The company serves engineers, scientists, and students across aerospace and defense, AI and machine learning, automotive, and photonics research—sectors experiencing accelerated digital transformation.[1] Rather than forcing users to purchase multiple specialized instruments, Liquid Instruments delivers a single device capable of functioning as 15+ different instruments through software configuration, dramatically reducing both upfront costs and the time required to set up complex test environments.[2][6]
Founded in 2014 and based in San Diego, California, the company emerged from sophisticated instrumentation technology developed for the GRACE-FO satellite mission.[2] This heritage in precision engineering informs its core mission: to accelerate the journey from research idea to implementation by an order of magnitude, cutting both time and cost in advanced R&D workflows.[1]
The company's founding was directly inspired by FPGA technology developed for the GRACE-FO (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On) satellite program.[2] This experience demonstrated the power of field-programmable gate arrays to deliver flexible, reconfigurable instrumentation—a realization that prompted the founders to ask whether this approach could transform the broader test and measurement industry. Daniel Shaddock, co-founder and CEO, has been instrumental in translating this satellite-era innovation into commercial products accessible to researchers and engineers worldwide.[4]
The company's evolution reflects a deliberate strategy to address an industry-wide problem: the test and measurement sector had remained largely unchanged, relying on bulky, single-purpose hardware boxes that were expensive and inflexible.[5] Liquid Instruments positioned itself as a catalyst for modernization, introducing a software-centric alternative that could adapt to evolving user needs through over-the-air updates rather than requiring hardware replacement.
Each Moku device contains a powerful FPGA that enables instant reconfiguration into whichever instrument the user needs—from oscilloscopes and spectrum analyzers to advanced tools like lock-in amplifiers and laser lock boxes.[2] This eliminates the need for multiple dedicated instruments cluttering laboratory benchtops.
The company offers three distinct devices tailored to different use cases: Moku:Pro for technology development, Moku:Lab for research, and Moku:Go for portable design and test applications.[2] The newest addition, Moku:Delta, features the highest-channel count microwave lock-in amplifier capability and supports up to 8 instrument slots with more than 2 billion possible custom instrument configurations.[3]
Liquid Instruments has introduced Generative Instrumentation, an industry-first capability that enables engineers to create custom instruments and configure complex systems using natural language prompts and agentic AI.[3] This removes the barrier of requiring knowledge of digital logic design or programming—users can generate custom FPGA code compatible with tools like ChatGPT and deploy it instantly.[2]
Rather than treating software as an afterthought, Liquid Instruments releases regular software upgrades that add new test features and instruments to existing hardware, extending device lifespan and capability without requiring new purchases.[2] Users can run multiple instruments simultaneously with low-latency, lossless digital connections between them.[5]
Liquid Instruments operates at the intersection of several powerful trends. The shift toward software-defined infrastructure is reshaping hardware-intensive industries, and test and measurement is no exception. As sectors like AI, photonics, and aerospace accelerate their innovation cycles, the traditional model of purchasing specialized instruments for each application becomes economically and operationally untenable.[4]
The company's embrace of generative AI positions it ahead of the curve in an industry that has historically lagged in adopting cutting-edge software paradigms. By making complex instrumentation accessible through natural language interfaces, Liquid Instruments democratizes capabilities that previously required specialized expertise, expanding the addressable market beyond traditional engineers to include students and domain experts without deep signal processing knowledge.[3]
Additionally, Liquid Instruments' expansion into Australia—with investments in local talent and AI capabilities—reflects broader geopolitical efforts to strengthen technology manufacturing ecosystems outside traditional hubs, positioning the company as a key player in distributed innovation infrastructure.[1]
Liquid Instruments is riding a fundamental shift in how technical professionals interact with measurement tools. The company's trajectory suggests that the future of test and measurement belongs to platforms, not point products—devices that evolve through software rather than hardware replacement cycles. The introduction of Generative Instrumentation signals an even more ambitious vision: instruments that configure themselves based on user intent rather than requiring manual setup.
The timing is particularly favorable. As AI and machine learning workloads demand increasingly sophisticated validation, as photonics research accelerates, and as aerospace and defense sectors push toward faster development cycles, demand for flexible, rapidly reconfigurable test platforms will only intensify. Liquid Instruments' ability to combine hardware performance with software flexibility—and now, AI-driven customization—positions it to capture significant market share from legacy instrument manufacturers still selling single-purpose boxes.
The company's influence will likely extend beyond its direct customers. By demonstrating that software-defined approaches can deliver superior performance and flexibility in traditionally hardware-centric domains, Liquid Instruments is validating a broader architectural principle that will reshape how technical infrastructure is built across multiple industries.
Liquid Instruments has raised $37.0M across 2 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $8.0M Venture Round in June 2024.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 1, 2024 | $8.0M Venture Round | Acorn Capital, Alumni Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Lockheed Martin Ventures | |
| Sep 1, 2022 | $29.0M Series B | Acorn Capital, Alumni Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Lockheed Martin Ventures |