Morse Micro, a fabless semiconductor firm developing Wi-Fi HaLow solutions for the Internet of Things (IoT), has announced raising $140 million in Series B funding anchored by Japan-based MegaChips Corporation.
The funding round also saw the participation of existing investors, including Blackbird Ventures, Main Sequence Ventures, Clean Energy Finance Corporation, Skip Capital, Uniseed, SpringCapital and Malcolm and Lucy Turnbull.
Morse Micro, co-founded by Wi-Fi pioneers and innovators Michael De Nil and Andrew Terry in 2016, is developing a Wi-Fi HaLow that can reach 10 times the range of conventional Wi-Fi technology. The company is headquartered in Australia, with offices in China, India, the UK and US.
Morse Micro said it intends to use the capital raised to deepen its offerings, including the design of new solutions, while accelerating the go-to-market strategy for its existing Wi-Fi HaLow chips and modules.
Wi-Fi HaLow is the first Wi-Fi standard tailored to meet the needs of the IoT, making it a superior alternative to traditional Wi-Fi alternatives and many other wireless technologies.
With the investment, MegaChips will not only manufacture Morse Micro’s compliant semiconductors and modules but will also provide quality assurance, sales support and new distribution channels that will deliver scale across the region.
The two companies will also engage in joint sales and promotion activities to grow the market for Wi-Fi HaLow solutions, according to the announcement.
MegaChips Corporation was established in 1990 as the first innovative fabless semiconductor company in Japan.
“MegaChips pursues strategic partnerships and investments with promising startups like Morse Micro that have innovative ideas, cutting-edge applications and are expanding their businesses in areas such as industrial IoT, wireless communications and energy control,” said Tetsuo Hikawa, president and CEO of MegaChips Group.