Impinj: the history behind RAIN RFID and item connectivity

Impinj was founded in 2000 to develop radio-frequency identification technology capable of giving individual physical items a low-cost digital identity.

How Impinj developed

The company became a central supplier in the RAIN RFID ecosystem, developing endpoint chips, readers and software that let retailers and other organisations identify tagged items without line-of-sight scanning. Impinj went public on Nasdaq in July 2016.

Impinj in 2026

By 2026, Impinj provided RFID chips, readers and platform technology used for inventory, supply-chain and asset-visibility applications.

Its history is about connecting inexpensive physical objects to software systems, a narrower but highly practical version of the broader Internet of Things vision.

Information was checked against public company material, regulatory filings and reputable independent reporting where available, using sources accessible on 18 September 2026.