OceanGate Inc. recently appointed Geoffrey Barker and Lee Thompson to serve on the company's board of directors, effective immediately.

Barker is the COO, co-founder and a member of the board of directors of RPX Corp., which provides patent risk-management solutions to companies in the broad technology industry. He has an extensive background developing new businesses, and, in addition to RPX, founded and co-founded two other companies, one of which was ultimately sold for $400 million.

Prior to becoming an entrepreneur, Barker held positions in research, trading and investment banking. He holds a master of business administration degree from Columbia University and a bachelor in economics from Tufts University.

In 2012, Barker was a recipient of the Ernest & Young entrepreneur of the year award for northern California.

Thompson is CEO and co-founder of BlueView Technologies. He has secured and managed numerous commercial funding rounds and research and development grants, as well as developed technologies leading to multiple product developments in fields of Navy systems, medical ultrasound, consumer products, and marine electronics.

Thompson received his doctorate degree from the University of Texas at Austin and has an affiliate research associate position at the applied physics laboratory of the University of Washington.