Tokyo-based Renesas Electronics, a semiconductor solutions provider, announced on Monday that it has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Paris-based Sequans Communications, a company that claims to be a leader in 5G/4G cellular IoT chips and modules.

Renesas intends to acquire Sequans through a tender offer of $3.03 per ADS in cash, subject to approval from the Sequans Board and works council.

The deal values Sequans at around $249M, including net debt, and is expected to be finalised in the first quarter of 2024.

Aim of this acquisition

Renesas plans to integrate Sequans’ wide range of cellular connection devices and intellectual property (IP) in its product lineup. This will include microcontrollers, microprocessors, analogue and mixed-signal front ends, and microcontrollers. 

Renesas will also be able to increase its market share in the Wide Area Network (WAN) sector, which includes a variety of data rates. Additionally, it will expand Renesas’ existing extensive line of PAN and LAN connection solutions.

Georges Karam, Chairman and CEO of Sequans, says, “As many telecom operators around the world continue to invest in 5G infrastructure and with the expanding deployment of IoT applications, combining with Renesas opens up vast opportunities to usher in a new era of seamless connectivity and digital mobility that can transform a multitude of industries.”

Renesas’ acquisition of Sequans is part of its strategy to expand connectivity offerings through strategic acquisitions. They have been collaborating since 2020 to deliver integrated solutions for massive IoT and broadband IoT applications, combining Renesas’ processors with Sequans’ wireless chipsets.

Provider of cellular IoT connectivity solutions

Founded in 2003, Sequans is a fabless semiconductor firm focused on designing chipsets and modules for IoT devices. 

Sequans specialises in low-power wireless devices and provides chipsets and modules for IoT applications. 

The company’s products offer extensive 5G/4G cellular connectivity options, including 5G NR, Cat 4, Cat 1, and LTE-M/NB-IoT, providing reliable wireless connectivity for IoT without the need for a gateway. 

Their solutions support massive IoT with low data rates and are certified to meet the regulatory specifications of major carriers in North America, Asia-Pacific, and Europe.

Besides Paris, Sequans also has offices in the US, UK, Israel, Hong Kong, Singapore, Finland, Taiwan, South Korea, and China.

Brief about Renesas

Renesas Electronics Corporation is a global provider of microcontrollers, offering complete semiconductor solutions that aim to create a safer, smarter, and more sustainable future. 

The company’s expertise lies in embedded processing, analog, power, and connectivity technologies.

Renesas’ semiconductor solutions accelerate time to market for automotive, industrial, infrastructure, and IoT applications, leading to billions of connected and intelligent devices that improve people’s lives.

Silicon Canals recently had the honour of interviewing Tom Furness, an inventor and a professor at the University of Washington, during The Next Web Conference in Amsterdam.

For 57 years, Tom Furness, known as the Grandfather of virtual reality and augmented reality, has devoted himself to building interfaces that bridge the gap between humans and machines. His work dives into the realm of unlocking human intelligence and forging connections between minds.

Alongside various inventions, Furness has nurtured a thriving ecosystem of innovation. He has started over 25 companies in the VR/AR domain, having spun off from collaborations with his students and colleagues.

“But one of the ones that really has my heart now is a nonprofit company we call the Virtual World Society,” Furness says.

The Virtual World Society is a nonprofit organisation with a mission to engage individuals, families and communities in the virtual world and create “better realities.” According to Furness, the organisation intends to “unlock minds” and “link hearts” to improve society worldwide. 

Based in Hungary, Virtual World Society is part of the Civil Society Empowerment Programme (CSEP) network within the European Union’s Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN). It specialises in working with young people aged 12-25, focusing on education, inclusion, social cohesion, media, and migration. The organisation empowers the younger generation and addresses societal challenges.

“It’s basically taking the technology of our age and directing it and encouraging it toward humanitarian applications,” the professor says.

Listen to the full interview on Spotify!

Paradigm shift while building cockpits

Furness reveals that he found the starting point of his virtual reality work while working for the Department of Defense and the US Air Force. His task was to find improved methods for building cockpits in advanced fighter aircraft.

“So that pilot could actually operate ’em cause they’re so complex and a typical fighter cockpit would have like, 300 switches and 75 displays and 11 switches on the control stick and nine switches on the throttle,” Furness says.

Flying at high speeds and facing hostile situations demanded quick decision-making with far-reaching consequences. Recognising the challenges pilots face in such demanding environments, Furness sought a paradigm shift. 

“And that paradigm shift was to basically organise and portray information the way we really work in a natural way,” Furness says. “To draw pictures and to create these graphical representations of a lot of this information, rather than instruments that you have to interpret right what they need.”

In 1966, such ideas were revolutionary and largely confined to confidential military research, not widely known to the general public. Furness and his team worked tirelessly, developing and testing these cutting-edge technologies.

Grandfather of virtual reality

Over the next 23 years, Furness continued refining this technology while serving as a faculty member. The impact of his work extended beyond military applications, which sparked exploration in the virtual reality realm. 

As a pioneer in the field, he laid the foundation for what would eventually become a dynamic and transformative industry. Furness even earned the nickname “grandfather of virtual reality,” which is plastered on his Wikipedia page. 

“I left the military and became a professor at the University of Washington and for another 33 years have been developing technology. So the reason I’m the grandfather is because I’m sort of them,” Furness says. 

“Well, I’m not only old and body at least, but I have been continuously working on this and [be the] only one on the planet has done so. So I probably spent more time in virtual reality than anybody else.”

Aligning with the nickname, Furness viewed himself as an “80-year-old guy that is living an 80 year old body, but actually inside is about 18, but trying to get to 12”. He shared that he felt some years being taken off him when he put on the VR headset, even feeling like a child again.

“The only time you’re really living is in the now. And you can worry about the future. You can worry about the past, but you don’t live there. You’re living in the now,” Furness says. “And I was trying to think about who actually is a great example of living in the now and it was a 12 year old.”

Furness’s quest to live in the now and cultivate a sense of awe led him to draw inspiration from an unlikely origin — a 12-year-old. “A 12-year-old doesn’t worry about uncertainties and anxieties like an 18-year-old does,” he says. Striving to emulate this outlook, Furness seeks to recapture the curiosity and excitement that often fade with age.

Furness also believes in the connection between the physical body and the spirit. According to his views, our bodies serve as a vessel to house our spirits, which animate us and allow us to interact with the world. The physical interactions we have with others, such as touching, are not only material experiences but also play a role in expressing our intentions and spirits.

“So when you, you can reach out and touch a person that’s real, and it feels real. Not only that, after a while, you don’t even notice that this is really the avatar representing a person,” Furness says. “There’s a real spirit in there, there’s a real intelligence and just to prove it, we had this… Um, I guess you’d say a happening that we discovered in the laboratory.”

Tom then describes a VR experience he had with a friend who lived in Wales. Despite being thousands of miles apart, they did activities like playing golf and tennis, using their avatars as representations. 

Tom also recounts a unique incident during their virtual art session where they discovered the ability to transfer energy and emotions between their avatars. He describes using a tool called a “plasma brush”, which is akin to a sparkling beam manipulated with a brush. Furness drew a line from his chest to Daniel’s. In response, Daniel also chose the plasma brush and created a helix that surrounded their connected lines.

“It came back to me, and as you sort of see a flow, something with the red flow was coming from me. The blue flow was coming back from him and then all of a sudden it was like somebody hit your chest with a ball of fire,” Furness says. “Wow. And I felt this, and I said, ‘Daniel, do you feel anything?’ He said, ‘What is that?’”

This unexpected phenomenon intrigued them, and they started exploring its potential applications, even considering its use with cancer patients. Excited by the possibilities, Tom further discusses how VR could be a tool for exploring and understanding our inner power and consciousness.

Ultimately, Tom believed that virtual reality had the potential to enhance our appreciation for reality and human connections, making us more aware of our spiritual nature and abilities beyond our physical bodies. He emphasises the importance of understanding and harnessing our internal energy, which he called the biofield, to create profound connections with others and foster a sense of oneness.

With an infectious enthusiasm for VR’s potential, Furness showcases how VR empowers individuals to craft unique experiences and explore the world through a fresh lens. As the conversation unfolded, it became evident that VR offers more than mere escapism; it opens doors to self-discovery, creativity, and personal growth.

Utrecht-based Sensorfact, a climate-tech IoT scale-up that specialises in smart monitoring solutions for industry, announced on Wednesday that it has raised €25M in funding. 

The round was led by European growth investor Blume Equity with participation from existing investors FORWARD.one, Korys, and SET Ventures. 

The Dutch company says it will use the capital to accelerate expansion into new markets and optimise its current product suite. The investment will also help Sensorfact expand the range of resource categories measured and serve industrial businesses globally.

The announcement comes over a year after raising €13M in funding from FORWARD.one, Korys, and SET Ventures in January 2022.

Pieter Broekema, CEO of Sensorfact, says, “We deeply appreciate the trust of our investors and dedicated employees. With Blume Equity on board, we are confident that we will continue to drive innovation towards a greener and more sustainable industry even faster.”

“We have already achieved remarkable energy savings for European industrial plants, underscoring our significant impact towards a net-zero future,” he adds. 

Sensorfact: Improving resource efficiency of industrial SMEs

Founded in 2016, Sensorfact is on a mission to offer manufacturers an integrated, user-friendly, and budget-friendly solution. 

The all-in-one, self-install system allows manufacturers to improve resource efficiency and maximise machine uptime by smartly monitoring electricity, gas, water, and compressed air usage. 

Furthermore, it can accurately predict maintenance requirements, ensuring smooth operations for manufacturers.

The core USP is in the smart algorithms and productivity enablement tools the company uses to translate the data into actionable insights, with Sensorfact also providing the IoT hardware needed for the measurements.

Currently, it has over 150 employees across offices in Utrecht, Amsterdam, Berlin, and Barcelona, and serves over 1,300 clients in 40+ countries.

The lead investor

Blume Equity is a European climate-tech growth investor dedicated to delivering profit with purpose by supporting fast-growth European businesses addressing the climate crisis to scale. 

Blume works in close partnership with management teams on the growth journey, drawing upon long scale-up and sustainability experience. 

The company has hubs in Amsterdam and London, and operating partners across other key European geographies.

Eleanor Blagbrough, co-founding Partner of Blume Equity, says, “Sensorfact is a fantastic company, epitomising the kind of inherently impactful business we seek to back: Europe’s industrial SMEs need to improve their resource efficiency and this presents both a compelling impact and business opportunity.” 

France-based BeFC, a company that invented ecological biofuel cells that are paper-based, ultra-thin, and flexible, announced on Thursday, June 8, that it has raised €16M in a Series A round of funding. 

The round was supported by Avolta Partners as the sole financial advisor. Otium Capital was the new lead investor in this round, and was supported by existing investors Demeter, BNP Paribas Développement, and Supernova Invest.

Pierre Menard, Partner at Otium Capital, says, “BeFC’s revolutionary innovation is poised to address the challenges of single-use batteries. The remarkable achievements of the team to date align perfectly with our DNA to support visionary entrepreneurs driving transformative change.”

“This investment further highlights our deep interest in high-potential industrial projects, a thesis we initiated last year, with already over €40M committed,” says Menard.

Making electricity with papers and enzymes

Inspired by implantable technologies, BeFC energy is created using biocatalysts that convert natural biofuels (glucose and oxygen) into electricity. Any fluid, such as environmental or biological fluids, can be used to activate the fuel cells. 

BeFC claims that its fuel cells do not contain toxic or polluting chemicals and they do not interfere with existing recycling processes.

From industrial logistics to population health, BeFC technologies and services enable the installation of a digital interface using an active sensing platform to secure supply chains, optimise workload, and improve safety. This is accomplished while lowering both the cost and the environmental effect.

BeFC technology is appropriate for low-power applications such as those in which sensor data is gathered and processed sporadically using wireless protocols. Microprocessors and low-energy wireless communications (LoRa, Bluetooth, WiFi, etc.) can both be powered by BeFC products.

In addition to enabling the replacement of batteries for current applications, BeFC believes this strategy will provide new possibilities for Internet of Things (IoT), low-power ultra-thin health monitoring, and monitoring applications for logistics and transportation.

In 2020, BeFC raised €3M in a Seed round and was supported by Bpifrance and Ademe. This helped the firm to create prototype production facilities in France, bolster its IP portfolio with over 30 patents (a five-fold increase), assemble a competent staff, and present use cases in a variety of industry verticals.

BeFC has signed more than 10 Joint Development Agreements (JDAs) with major industry sector leaders such as Fortune 500, FTSE 100, and Nasdaq-listed firms, since its formation in May 2020.

Capital utilisation

BeFC says the current funding will help the company to move towards industrialisation. 

The money will help the company to carry out its aim of producing low-cost, low-impact electronics by solidifying its strategy and pushing its growth trajectory towards mass manufacturing.

Transitioning to an ink-based system to exploit high throughput printing technology, BeFC’s goal is to attain a production capacity of 1 million units per day by the end of 2024.

BeFC will also use its resources to increase customer interaction and pursue new market segments that are within its performance and long-term interest scope. 

The company says it will add experienced industry disruptors to its current staff of 45, with the goal of spreading the technology worldwide to North America and Asia.

Oulu-based Haltian, a company that provides product development services and commercial Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, announced on Monday that it raised €22M in a fresh round of funding for growth.

With this round, the IoT company has raised a total funding of €40M to date.

The round was led by Mandatum Asset Management Growth Equity II fund (MAM GE) and joined by Varma, Tesi, Ventic and Inventure.

Kitty Laine, Investment Manager, Private Equity at MAM, says, “Haltian has a history of providing state-of-the-art IoT solutions with unparalleled accuracy and data – an indispensable component of truly invaluable IoT solutions.”

“We are proud to be a part of Haltian’s new funding round and support the team to expand further into new markets.”

“The new funding also strongly validates their unique position in the growing IoT market. Haltian’s impressive growth of over 50 paper cent annually and tripling turnover in just three years make it a fitting investment for Mandatum Asset Management’s Growth Equity Strategy,” adds Laine.

Developing easy-to-use IoT software and sensor solutions

Haltian believes that enhancing work comfort and facilitating hybrid work, as well as digitisation of the real estate sector and energy and space-use efficiency, are driving demand for new Internet-of-Things solutions and services. 

And according to a report by WorldGBC, buildings now account for 39 per cent of worldwide energy-related carbon emissions, with 28 per cent coming from operational emissions, such as the energy required to heat, cool, and power them.

This is where Haltian steps in.

The company says it is developing simple IoT software and sensor solutions and services that can be applied to a variety of commercial real estate demands.

Their sensor solution, Empathic Building, is a digital twin solution in modern desk-sharing offices where employees need to find colleagues and available spaces when arriving at the office, book those spaces and get analytics and reporting of the used workplaces.

Additionally, Haltian is also testing the Emphatic Building solution in hospitals, where it may be used to improve operations such as patient flow, equipment, and facility management.

Pasi Leipälä, co-founders of Haltian, says, “At Haltian, our mission is deeply rooted in making working life smoother. This mission has resonated with our clients. We are excited to continue to deliver cutting-edge IoT solutions that help our clients thrive in the digital age, make better data-driven decisions and ultimately contribute to building a more sustainable future.”

Companies from Japan to North America are among Haltian’s clients. In North America, the company will install its IoT systems in thousands of buildings this year. 

Haltian’s solutions are also used in offices and other buildings by many of the biggest facilities management and real estate firms in the world, including CBRE and ISS.

Capital utilisation

Haltian says it will use the funds to accelerate its expansion in the US and Europe and to launch new IoT products later in the year.

As per the company, its IoT solutions and services have attracted a lot of attention and top-tier clients; the US market alone accounts for a third of its income. 

With the fresh funds, the company, which recently started operations in the Netherlands and California, is looking to continue its international expansion.

“The new funding enables us to boost our global commercialisation efforts and to build a truly successful Finnish hi-tech story,” says Leipälä. 

“Specifically, the new funding will further support Haltian’s international expansion in Central Europe and North America, as well as our recruiting effort. As a way of answering to growing customer demand, we are also looking to launch new cutting-edge IoT products in 2023.”

About Haltian

Founded in 2012 by Pasi Leipälä, Teemu Vaattovaara, Jyrki Okkonen, and Ville Ylläsjarvi. Haltian offers IoT services.

These include the Empathic Building digital twin service for smart buildings, and Thingsee, a IoT technology platform that enables faster IoT launches for mass-scale deployments.

Besides, the company also offers New Product Development Services to help companies get their product from an idea to a ready product. Currently, it employs 145 people globally.

Qualinx, a fabless semiconductor company based in Delft, The Netherlands, has raised €8M in Series A round of funding.

The funding from FORWARD.one, InnovationQuarter Capital, and Waterman Ventures builds on earlier investments from Delft Enterprises.

Qualinx was founded by Massoud Tohidian, Iman Madadi, and Amir Reza Ahmadi Mehr as a spin-off from Delft University of Technology.

The Dutch startup claims to be pioneering ultra-low power tracking and connectivity solutions and the funding will help bring its digital RF technology to market.

In modern chip design, a large part of the analog area is now being transferred to the digital domain and digital RF technology plays a key role in enabling this transition.

A pioneer in digital RF technology

The core innovation of Qualinx originates from the PhD research of its founders in Digital Radio Frequency (DRF) technology.

As a spin-off, the company developed and successfully tested a new radio chip capable of receiving geo-positioning information from Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) with a 10 times lower power consumption.

As the electronics industry increasingly moves towards smaller chip size with lower power consumption, the industry has opened for competition.

With its chip available at reduced cost compared to existing solutions and able to detect signals from all major satellite systems including GPS to accurately determine location and time, Qualinx is now gearing to market its product.

The startup says its DRF technology “enables CMOS scaling for GPS-like radios, and thereby a significant reduction in the chip’s power consumption, size and cost price.”

Bringing DRF to market

With the funding, Qualinx is preparing to bring its DRF technology to market.

The startup is preparing to launch its system-on-chip called QLX300+ featuring the world’s smallest and most power-efficient GNSS sensor.

Tom Trill, CEO at Qualinx, says, “The QLX300+ will use as much as 10 times less energy than currently available GNSS devices in the market and will be in mass production next year. As a result of the improved efficiency, the battery life of, for example, fitness trackers and smartwatches can be extended from hours to several days.”

While Qualinx’s initial product is limited to GNSS, the technology can be expanded to create any radio.

The startup is working on a second-generation product called the QLX400 that will combine GNSS with an Internet-of-Things (IoT) radio on a single chip.

With this product, Qualinx aims to bring to market a SoC capable of tracking and communicating a location while barely consuming any power.

One of the overarching themes in the semiconductor industry is one where companies are trying to cram in performance without increasing power consumption.

Apple‘s recent victories with its M-series chip for its laptops is a good example and has forced the likes of Intel to play catchup as well.

Qualinx aims to do that for the radio signal industry with its small chip design and low power consumption.

Trill adds the single-chip solution makes it more secure to ship and track.

He adds, “There is global concern about the security of any asset, especially when it moves. Shipping a product from warehouse to store without breakpoints in connectivity currently requires a multi-chip solution to provide seamless connectivity between classic GNSS and ground based IoT radios. We offer a single-chip solution that can do both. It is universally applicable, affordable and has an ultra-low power budget.”

The investor

Backing Qualinx’s Series A round is FORWARD.one, InnovationQuarter Capital, and Waterman Ventures.

FORWARD.one is a VC firm focussed on high-tech hardware startups and scaleups with €200M under management. The VC firm has backed startups in the field of robotics, semiconductors, photonics, sensors, extended reality and biomanufacturing.

InnovationQuarter, on the other hand, is one of the most active investors. It acts as a lifecycle investor and has funded startups & scaleups in the province of Zuid-Holland.

Waterman Ventures is known for investing in ambitious technology companies and Qualinx is among the most ambitious in the RF technology space.

“We are proud and excited to partner with Qualinx alongside our co-investors,” says Arjan Göbel, partner at FORWARD.one.

“Not often do we see such a fundamental step-change in technology development addressing a large, global and future proof market. Adding their top-tier and fast–growing team to the equation, we are convinced that Qualinx has the potential to replace all existing GNSS and radio communications technology,” adds Gobel.

Ghent, Belgium-based Sealution, a developer of an onboard connectivity system for predictive maintenance and locating crewmembers below deck, announced on Wednesday, February 15, that it has raised €1.3M in a fresh round of funding. 

Out of the total amount, €800K came from an equity round with Venture Studio Miles Ahead and investment fund Angelwise. Another €200K came as a convertible loan from investment platform Techstars, and various business angels. 

The Belgian company also raised €315K in subsidies through Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship (VLAIO) in September 2022. 

Sealution says it will use the capital to switch from development to production (lines).

The marine vessel’s devices and systems exchange valuable data 24/7, thanks to their Internet of Things (IoT) solution. “So feel free to compare our internal network of receivers to the Apple Home of a ship at sea,” says Sealution CEO Sebastian Hamers. 

He adds, “By the way, we use Bluetooth to connect those new sensors. Bluetooth uses less energy than Wi-Fi, for example. Moreover, classical wireless networks don’t get through the steel walls of ocean-going vessels anyway, especially below deck.”

Sealution: Connecting ships through IoT

Founded by former maritime officer Sebastian Hamers (CEO), Ruben Verplancke (CFO), and Romeo Martens (CTO), Sealution has developed an IoT solution that connects all devices and systems on seagoing vessels. 

Sealution says its solution makes ships more sustainable and their maintenance budget-friendly.

How does it work?

Sealution works with a network of receivers or ‘gateways,’ one in each room, allowing data signals to pass through the vessels above and below the deck. 

The gateways receive and send the retrieved data via existing cabling to a central module. 

This module analyses, filters, and ranks the data and transmits it to a server that can display it visually on the bridge or in the control room. 

The collected data is used for fuel savings, preventive maintenance, and reselling to relevant data aggregators such as insurance companies. 

Sealution says its solution can also make internal communication for the crew members, the shipping company, and the cargo efficient. 

Since all the information is transmitted automatically with Sealution’s system, the shipping company gets more insights for the shipper, such as the condition and position of the cargo. 

In January 2023, Sebastian Hamers and Romeo Martens tested the full installation for the first time on the high seas with the Dutch shipping company Seatrade. 

“The connectivity system was fully on point, to the far end of the ship, with no loss of speed or data,” says the company.

“We strongly feel that we can revolutionise data sharing and innovation on ocean-going vessels with Sealution,” adds CFO Ruben Verplancke. 

“Why? Our technology is extremely reliable, applicable to large ocean-going vessels, and can be adapted by software engineers according to the specific needs of a fleet. The sea is the limit,” he concludes.

Aalborg, Denmark-based Trackunit, an IoT service provider, announced on Tuesday that it has acquired Berlin-based ConTech startup Flexcavo.

Trackunit aims to extend its reach in the contractor market with this acquisition. It will also allow the Danish company to manage the rental/contractor relationship better in the future.

Flexcavo: What you need to know

Founded in 2020 by Benedict Aicher and Leonhard Fricke, Flexcavo is working to digitalise the construction industry. 

The platform specialises in data-enabled workflow and process management, enabling contractors and rental companies to increase their efficiency, lower costs and improve the team’s collaboration across construction sites, yards, and headquarters.

“We are excited and proud to join forces with Trackunit,” says Flexcavo Co-Founder Benedict Aicher. “This enables us to double down on our ambition to be the leading partner for every contractor who strives for excellence and wants to make the most of every single job.

He adds, “Being part of the Trackunit ecosystem allows for a deeper integration into the contractor value chain and beyond,” he said. “I know the Trackunit team shares our commitment to building the most useful industry for the world, and I can’t wait to get started.”

The company employs around 30 people.

Leonhard Fricke says, “It will boost our developing capabilities significantly so that contractors and rental companies can benefit from even faster feature releases, real-time data across all machinery, and even more automation of processes between site, yard, and headquarters,” he said. “Making our offering available in other key markets and supporting customers in their digitisation efforts will be our key mission going forward.”

Trackunit: What you need to know

Founded by Soren Brogaard Jensen, Trackunit is a SaaS-based IoT solution and machine insights provider to the global construction equipment industry. 

The Danish platform collects and analyses machine data in real-time to deliver actionable and predictive information, empowering customers with data-driven foresight.

From operator safety and machine health to business optimisation, the company’s services benefit the everyday operations of customers globally. 

Trackunit services its customers worldwide from its offices in Denmark, Canada, the United States, Singapore, Sweden, Norway, France, Holland, Germany, the UK, Australia, and Japan.

“We’re delighted to welcome Flexcavo into the Trackunit group, and this significantly strengthens our offering to contractors and those with mixed fleets,” said Soeren Brogaard, CEO of Trackunit. “We’re looking forward to leveraging Flexcavo’s expertise and ensuring we’re serving our customers in the best way possible moving forward.”

He adds, “Our team has doubled in the last 18 months, and with the acquisition of Flexcavo, we’re on track to continue growing,” says Brogaard. “We’re ambitious, and this move fits perfectly with our overall strategy.”

Delft-based Nurtio Technologies, a professional gardening service provider, announced on Wednesday that it has secured an undisclosed investment from the Amsterdam-based impact fund Shamrock Ventures.

Nurtio says it will use the funds to accelerate the growth of its current product lineup, strengthen its market position and prepare to launch new products. 

The Dutch company is also planning to raise another investment round later this year. 

Iryna van der Meij, CEO of Nurtio Technologies, says, “We are beyond excited to have someone as experienced and as knowledgeable as Shamrock Ventures on board. Having an investor that shares our market ambition and our passion for nature, and a healthy environment means a great deal of support for us. We are convinced that this cooperation will benefit both organisations and all the participants of the interiorscaping market, as new funding is allowing us to test several new product ideas and improve on the existing product portfolio.”

Nurtio Technologies: What you need to know

Founded by Iryna Pakhomova, Marco Zijlstra, and Yuri Kriachko, Nurtio provides connected gardening products for commercial real estate, removing all the guesswork from indoor plant maintenance and making plant ownership easier and considerably less costly.

Currently, the company offers two products:

Nurtio Protect: A sensor-based product for the remote monitoring of the most valuable plant assets. The product gives care tips based on all the knowledge about the plants and allows users to adjust them depending on the particular situation. 

Nurtio Insight: A plant tagging software to automate field inventory management and service reporting for plant care companies. 

Investor

Based out of Amsterdam, Shamrock Ventures is an early-stage impact venture capital fund managed by experienced entrepreneurs and operators. Last year, Shamrock closed a €10M pre-Seed and early-Seed impact fund to focus on purpose-driven tech startups in the Netherlands. 

Tommy Hurley, Managing Partner of Shamrock Ventures, says, “The solutions of Nurtio are disrupting the traditional interiorscaping market by making processes more efficient in terms of costs and environmental savings, and we are excited to help accelerate Nurtio’s impact.”

Wasserbillig, Luxembourg-based OQ Technology, a global 5G IoT satellite operator, announced on Thursday that it has secured €13M in a Series A round of funding led by Wa’ed Ventures and Phaistos Investment Fund. 

The company says it will use the funds to develop its technology solution, acquire more spectrum licenses, and grow its 5G IoT satellite constellation. 

OQ Technology says the constellation provides fast and real-time data processing for IoT and Machine-to-Machine (M2M) applications such as wellhead monitoring, SCADA system, asset tracking, drone control, and more in remote and rural areas. 

Omar Qaise, founder and CEO of OQ Technology, says, “This investment is testament to the strength of our business plans, capabilities, and technology that OQ has been implementing since its inception in 2016, and a clear differentiator from many satellite IoT companies who rely on non-standard technologies. Against a challenging economic backdrop, our decision to seek funding was rewarded with a raise that will help us achieve our immediate goals in terms of growth, expansion into the Middle East, Africa, Asia, South America, and Oceania, increasing our spectrum licences and patents portfolio, and advancing our product development. The company will also accelerate its growth and recruitment efforts in Luxembourg.”

The announcement comes four months after the company launched its third satellite mission, Tiger-3, aboard SpaceX Falcon 9 rideshare mission, Transporter-4.

OQ Technology: What you need to know

Founded by Omar Qaise, OQ Technology is building a global satellite constellation dedicated to 5G “Internet-of-Things”​ communication that can provide connectivity anywhere, especially in remote and rural areas.

Qaise says, “We have pioneered satellite-based 5G communications with the introduction of the world’s first universal IoT device providing connectivity using a satellite in low Earth orbit (LEO) in 2019 and other patented technologies since. All our launched missions and service demos with Global Fortune 500 companies have been successful, and we have more missions in the pipeline.”

The company says it has demonstrated Narrowband IoT connectivity over Low Earth Orbit satellites and is deploying a global constellation to provide 3GPP compatible satellite IoT telecommunication services for mobile operators and customers.

OQ Technology says its patented technology can be embedded in existing cellular chips, enabling billions globally to have ubiquitous IoT connectivity. 

The company has also established two subsidiaries with a global remit, – one in Athens, Greece, and another in Al Khobar, Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi subsidiary will host its first and only satellite 5G network centre in the Kingdom and the MENA region. It will be used to engage with large oil and gas companies in the region and with the local industrial ecosystem and universities. 

The Greek subsidiary, under the name “OQ Technology Hellas”, will nest within the incubator/ accelerator unit “Corallia” of the Athena Research Centre, which also hosts the Hellenic Space Technologies and Applications Cluster (si-Cluster). 

5G Ventures has signed MoUs with both “Athena” and “Corallia,” and OQ Technology has already contacted companies from the si-Cluster to explore synergies and opportunities in Greece, says the company. 

Investor

Based out of Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Wa’ed Ventures is the entrepreneurial venture capital arm of Saudi Aramco.

The fund invests in early-stage startups with high growth potential that promote economic development in Saudi Arabia and enhance the entrepreneurship and innovation ecosystem in the Kingdom. 

“Our investment in OQ Technology, a global pioneer in satellite technology, is a true manifestation of our mission to position the Kingdom as the centre of gravity for global tech ventures,” says Fahad Alidi, Managing Director and CEO at Wa’ed Ventures. “We envision OQ to become the nucleus to building a full space tech ecosystem that starts with the Kingdom and outspread to the surrounding region.”

5G Ventures CEO, Antonis Tzortzakakis, says, “We believe there is great potential for 5G IoT technology, and with Saudi Aramco’s Wa’ed Ventures, we are very excited to invest in OQ Technology. The investment fits perfectly into 5G Ventures’ strategy for supporting innovative 5G-related technologies capable of creating value and contributing to the evolution of an innovation ecosystem in Greece.”