Quick Facts
Biography
Anastasios "Takis" Kyriakides (born December 17, 1946) is a Greek-American businessman and inventor who is the founder and chief executive officer of netTALK Inc. Kyriakides holds several patents and has founded a number of companies, including Lexicon Corporation, Mylex Corporation, Regency Cruise Lines, and netTALK.
Early life and education
Anastasios Kyriakides was born in Athens, Greece, on December 17, 1946, and later immigrated to the United States, receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in business from Florida International University in 1975.
Career
In the 1970s, Kyriakides invented and patented the LK3000, the first handheld language translation machine, a consumer electronics device that translated words from English into 12 different languages. In 1978, he appeared as a guest on The Merv Griffin Show to discuss his invention.
In 1979, Kyriakides founded the Lexicon Corporation to further develop and market the LK3000. Lexicon was ultimately acquired by Nixdorf Computer of Germany.
In 1983, Kyriakides founded the Mylex Corporation to develop and produce the first handheld optical scanner and VGA card for personal computers, and served as the company's president and chairman. Mylex stock was traded on the NASDAQ under the stock symbol MYLX until it was acquired as a wholly owned subsidiary of IBM.
In 1984, Kyriakides founded Regency Cruises Inc., which was listed at that time on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol SHIP, and served as its chairman and secretary.
Kyriakides founded and presently serves as chief executive officer of netTALK.com, Inc., and is the co-inventor of the netTALK DUO, a consumer electronics VoIP device for making telephone calls over an internet connection.