HaiLa Technologies has announced that it has raised a $10.35 million USD ($14.15 million CAD) investment with participation from a new strategic investor, Japanese electronics manufacturer Murata Electronics.
The Montreal-based fabless semiconductor and software company, which develops IoT communications chips and solutions, says the new funding will help drive R&D development, grow its team, and bring HaiLa’s ultra low-power system-on-chip (SoC) solutions to market.
Investors involved in HaiLa’s $5 million USD ($6.8 million CAD) 2020 seed round returned for this investment, including Stanford University, Ecofuel Fund, Chrysalix, and TandemLaunch. By adding Murata, HaiLa says it’s getting a partner with international reach in the semiconductor industry.
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“HaiLa and Murata share common sustainability goals. Our collective mission is to drive down power consumption in connected IoT sensing devices and work towards a level of power-efficiency that reduces the overall battery requirement,” said CEO of HaiLa, Derek Kuhn, in a statement.
HaiLa develops chips used in connecting the wireless communications of IoT devices, from connecting smart home devices over Wi-Fi to sensors used in industrial automation.
The company says its “ultra-low power” system-on-chip (SoC) products will lower operating expenses related to changing batteries as well as reduce the number of batteries required for a connected device’s lifetime.
Canada’s semiconductor industry has been active recently. In June, BetaKit covered the formation of the Semiconductor Industry Leadership and Innovation Canada Action Network (SILICAN) in response to the federal government’s $240-million commitment to bolstering the country’s semiconductor ecosystem in February 2022.
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According to the group, SILICAN member organizations are committed to working collaboratively with federal and provincial governments to drive growth and investment in Canada’s semiconductor industry.
HaiLa says that with this investment it has raised $16.8 million USD ($23 million CAD) in funding, including $3 million CAD in non-dilutive financing from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC) in 2021 and a $500,000 CAD grant from TechnoClimat Quebec in August.
Feature image courtesy HaiLa.
