In Memoriam: Mats Karlsson

	Mats Karlsson

Mats Karlsson, co-founder of the Swedish power distribution company StageSmarts, has died, Lighting&Sound America has learned. He was 64 and suffered from cancer.

A well-known and respected member of the industry, Karlsson began his career in Sweden, working in production before moving into sales, product development, and product management. He worked for Barco as a product manager for creative LED products before joining Martin Professional as technical manager for the visual solutions unit. Later, he worked for VER (which was subsumed into PRG), and AC Entertainment.

Sharing his deep knowledge of technology, he contributed technical articles to numerous publications and spoke often at trade shows and seminars.

Karlsson founded StageSmarts with Erik Davidson in 2015. Their idea was that power distribution needed to change to keep up with other technological developments. This led to the smartPDU intelligent power distribution system, which received a PLASA Award for Innovation in 2017.

In a statement, StageSmarts says, "It is with great sadness that we share that our co-founder, colleague, and friend Mats Karlsson passed away this week after a battle with cancer.

"Mats spent more than four decades in the entertainment technology industry, always driven by curiosity, technical excellence and a desire to challenge the status quo.

"That mindset was at the heart of StageSmarts from the very beginning. Mats believed in questioning accepted solutions, making decisions quickly when the path was clear, and building things properly.

"Over the last year and a half, Mats continued to contribute to StageSmarts, sharing his experience, perspective, and ideas with the team.

"His influence on StageSmarts -- and on the wider entertainment technology industry -- will remain with us for many years to come.

"We will miss his knowledge, his drive, his directness and, most of all, Mats himself. Our thoughts are with his family, friends and everyone who had the privilege of knowing and working with him."

In a statement, AC Entertainment says, "We are deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Mats Karlsson. Mats was a valued member of our team and the co-founder of StageSmarts, a product that has lit countless stages. His engineering skill, curiosity, and commitment to getting the details right left a lasting mark on our company and on the wider entertainment lighting industry. Those who worked alongside him will remember his knowledge and intelligence."