Deepak Chopra ’73MS

Deepak Chopra ’73MS is the founder of OSI Systems, Inc., a vertically integrated designer and manufacturer of specialized electronic systems and components for critical applications in homeland security, healthcare, defense, and aerospace. OSI’s offerings include Rapiscan Systems, which creates aviation and air cargo solutions and large x-ray scanners at land borders and ports; Spacelabs, which designs and manufactures patient monitors and cardiology products; and the OSI Optoelectronics and Manufacturing division, which produces components and subsystems for aerospace, defense, healthcare, and other industries.

Chopra has served as president and chief executive officer since the company’s inception in May 1987, and as chairman of the board of directors since February 1992. Chopra took the company public in 1997. He currently also serves as the chief executive officer of several of the company’s subsidiaries. Thanks to his exemplary dedication and lifetime of unique and significant contributions to the field of technology through exceptional leadership and ingenuity, Chopra is the recipient of the 2022 UMass Alumni Honors Lifetime Achievement Award.

From 1976 to 1979 and from 1980 to 1987, Chopra held various positions with ILC Technology, Inc.—a publicly held manufacturer of lighting products—including chief executive officer, president, and chief operating officer of its united detector technology division. Chopra has also held various positions with Intel Corporation, TRW Semiconductors, and RCA Semiconductors. He holds a bachelor of science degree in electronics from Punjab Engineering College in Chandigarh, India, and a master of science degree in semiconductor electronics from UMass Amherst.

According to a Los Angeles Times profile, “Born in northern India, Chopra earned a master’s degree in electrical engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and took a job with RCA in New Jersey. ‘They made a mistake. They sent me to Redondo Beach [California] for a conference in November,’ he said of the 1974 trip. The sunny beaches made a quick impression. ‘Back home it was snow and ice. I thought, this is paradise,’ Chopra said. ‘I quit by telephone. I told my boss I wasn’t coming back.’ He worked for TRW and then Intel, but quickly decided that he wasn’t suited for big companies. ‘There is no innovation, no enthusiasm. Everyone is compartmentalized,’ he said. ‘I wanted to be an entrepreneur, a small-company guy.’” The Times also calls attention to that other Deepak Chopra: “The businessman shares a name with the internationally recognized author and holistic medicine practitioner, something that creates a little confusion.” But, Chopra told the Times jokingly, “It’s a great way to get restaurant seating.”