Meet the BlueIQ Team

What we do

At the heart of our team lies a dynamic blend of seasoned professionals and visionary innovators, committed to pushing the boundaries of technology and business development.

Our team is composed of veterans in business development and technical leadership, boasting extensive experience across relevant sectors. We bring unparalleled expertise and strategic insight, ensuring robust growth and sustained success.

We are driven by a proven track record of innovation and entrepreneurship within the technology domain.

Our passion for innovating new solutions and ventures fuels our commitment to excellence and continuous improvement.

Our strength lies in our ability to cultivate and lead high-performing teams. We are dedicated mentors and adept team builders, fostering a culture of collaboration, growth, and achievement.

As wizards in technological innovation, we are at the forefront of driving advancements in the field of sensors and sensing. Our relentless pursuit of cutting-edge solutions propels us to set new standards and shape the future of technology.

BLUEiQ’s s based in Boston, Massachusetts, Newport, Rhode Island, and Gulfport, Mississippi

Our Values

Innovation

Leveraging advanced AI and edge computing to create cutting-edge solutions for underwater acoustic monitoring.

Experience

A wealth of knowledge and expertise in marine technology, defense, and environmental monitoring.

Commitment

Focused on protecting marine ecosystems, enhancing port security, and improving operational efficiency.

Collaboration

Working closely with customers to tailor solutions that meet their specific needs and challenges.

Kim Gavin, CEO

From space satellites to seafloor sensing, Kim has spent 20+ years pushing the boundaries of sensor innovation, tech transition, and strategic growth across government, industry, and think tanks. A leader in emergent technologies, she thrives on turning cutting-edge research into real-world impact. As a mentor ambassador for women in science and technology, she’s not just shaping the future—she’s driving BLUEiQ to redefine persistent sensing with innovative impact.

Rob McGurrin, CTO

With 20+ years of expertise in underwater acoustics and signal processing, Rob leads the technical development of OpenEar technology, driving innovation from R&D to real-world deployment. A proven innovator with patented advancements, his work bridges cutting-edge AI sensing with practical solutions. Passionate about maritime domain awareness and noise pollution reduction, Rob ensures BLUEiQ’s technology is both impactful and mission-driven.

Awards

Award

August 1, 2024

2024-2025 Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) Incubator

Award

August 29, 2024

2024 Office of Naval Research (ONR) RISE-UP Technology Implementation Award - Winner

Award

October 7, 2024

2024 Ocean Exchange Award - Finalist

Award

January 15, 2025

BLUEiQ Awarded CRADA by NOAA in January 2025

I am excited to be working with BlueiQ to see how their technology can benefit our animal care at Mississippi Aquarium. They are responsive, interested in helping, and eager to use their technology to benefit humans, animals, and the environment.

Alexa Delaune Chief Scientist and Veterinary Medicine
Mississippi Aquarium

Kim and Rob are a great team. They know each other and know their space, as they have a long history of working together on innovative applications for passive listening technology. Super diligent and hard working, super collaborative and appreciative of mentor inputs, and their product has huge potential for environmental protection applications (which I care about a lot). I'm excited to see them succeed in building BLUEiQ!

Megan Pillsbury CEO
Dunya Analytics

It’s an honor to give my highest recommendations to BLUEiQ based on two decisive reasons from my ongoing experience working with Team BLUEiQ as a member of the BLUE Incubator at Blue Innovation Labs, and as a BX4 Cohort graduate from the BLUE Excelerator program at the Blue Institute: 1) Team - this team is seasoned, knowledgeable, amiable, and persistent - they are passionate about their tech and utilize professional follow-through like no others. 2) Tech - this is not your Grandfather’s Hydrophone - it is so much more. The long term impact trajectory for BLUEiQ vs. their competitors is clear for ocean species survival, offshore wind development, port and marine transport security, and national security applications. ps. If you don’t take the time to understand the tech and it’s impact for the ocean and other underwater environments then you haven’t read through their Executive Summary pages which covers that - in detail. Team + Tech = BLUEiQ Winner

Judith Underwood Founder
Blue Institute & Blue Incubator

I worked with Kim and Blue IQ as a mentor in the Blue Institute Excelerator in 2024. Kim is smart, thoughtful, diligent, driven and eager to exploring options to apply her technology. I plan to continue working with Kim to advance the company. This is a team that will succeed.

Kate Putnam Managing Director
Golden Seeds

Their unique acoustic technology has broad applications and they showed an amazing ability to pivot to different customer needs in a variety of domains avoiding the mentality of "when you have a hammer every problem is a nail" that so often is a challenge with startups.

Joel Lawhead PMP
GISP

Participation in the Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) Newport, RI demonstration highlighted BLUEiQ as a premier innovator in real-time actionable intelligence with OpenEar, our software-defined hydrophone solution for persistent, autonomous, ubiquitous marine sensing and monitoring.

Providence Business Journal

Dive in

Transforming undersea sound into actionable intelligence

What we do

Our Values

Innovation

Experience

Commitment

Collaboration

Sea-Level Experts

Awards

A Ripple Effect

Wave-Making Allies