• Stoke

  Participated · Series D · Apr 2009

  Stoke delivers gateway solutions that enable mobile operators to manage traffic growth and increase the efficiency, reliability, and scope of mobile data services. The company is led by President and CEO Vikash Varma and is based in Santa Clara, CA. Stoke received a US$5M strategic investment from Samsung Venture Investment Corporation to support its growth in the worldwide LTE market. The article identifies the investment as strategic but does not specify instrument details beyond that. Stoke is backed by venture capital firms and carriers including Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Sequoia Capital, Focus Ventures, and NTT Docomo. No revenue, user metrics, or prior round financial amounts are disclosed in the article. Stoke, founded in 2004 and headquartered in Santa Clara, California, designs and manufactures systems and hardware for mobile communications infrastructure. Its products support 3G, 4G and Wi‑Fi carrier networks and are designed to improve speeds and make networks more secure. The company’s hardware targets bandwidth efficiency as carriers face rapid growth in connected mobile devices and mobile data traffic. Keating Capital noted industry demand for 4G/LTE and Wi‑Fi over the next 5–10 years and said Stoke is well positioned to take advantage of that growth. Financially, the most recent transaction was a $3.5 million secondary purchase of common shares by Keating Capital from certain Stoke employees; Stoke did not issue new securities or receive new capital. Keating was the sole investor in the transaction and joins existing preferred-stock holders Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Sequoia Capital and Docomo Capital as investors in Stoke. Stoke builds mobile broadband infrastructure solutions that provide 3G and LTE capabilities and help network operators transition to 4G. Its products are designed to reduce information overload on carrier networks by improving scalability, flexibility, and cost. The company cites strong demand driven by rapid smartphone adoption and forecasts of massive growth in connected devices. Stoke closed 2010 with revenues four times those of 2009 and was expecting triple‑digit growth in the following year. It plans to use the new funding to double its size in 2011. Total funding to date is $92 million. Stoke builds hardware that provides mobile carriers the technology to let phones access different wireless networks including 3G, GSM, CDMA, Wi‑Fi and WiMax. Its systems converge wireless coverage and let phones seamlessly detect different networks and automatically switch based on location and availability. The product targets carriers facing massive increases in mobile data traffic from applications, video, and music. Stoke says the new funds will be used to support continuing partnerships with mobile carriers. Financially, the company has raised $15M in a Series D, bringing total funding to $65M. Prior rounds include a $20M Series C in 2007, a $19.8M Series B in 2005, and a $10M Series A.

• Sequans Communications

  Participated · Convertible Note · Feb 2008

  Sequans focuses 100% on cellular IoT, offering a complete portfolio of IoT-optimized chips and modules. Its core products include the Monarch 2 GM02S module for LTE‑M/NB‑IoT, Calliope 2 for Cat 1bis, Cassiopeia for Cat 4/CBRS/Anterix, and Taurus for 5G NR, with Taurus LT and a new 5G NR eRedCap chip forthcoming. The Monarch 2 GM02S delivers industry-leading low power consumption (1 µA in deep sleep), global deployment capability, and an EAL5+ certified secure enclave for integrated eSIM compliant with GSMA standards. Sequans technology is in-market: Withings has launched Body Pro and BPM Connect Pro devices using the Monarch 2 GM02S for always-on cellular health monitoring. To advance its 5G roadmap, Sequans was awarded €11 million in financing from the France 2030 Investment Plan to develop the next-generation 5G NR eRedCap chip. The company says the new chip will comply with 5G Release 18, target massive IoT needs for cost-effective, ultra-reliable, ultra-low-power connectivity, and remain backward compatible with 4G to ease the transition. Sequans is actively promoting its roadmap and products at industry events such as Embedded World 2024. Sequans Communications is a 4G chipmaker that supplies WiMAX chips to equipment manufacturers and mobile operators worldwide. The company has announced an expansion into LTE and intends to develop LTE and WiMAX semiconductor solutions in parallel. Sequans raised an undisclosed amount of capital in a round led by Alcatel‑Lucent and Motorola Ventures, with participation from its existing investors. The funds will be used to accelerate its LTE development timeline and add resources to dedicated teams. Sequans intends to demonstrate its first LTE samples in early 2010 to support pre-commercial operator trials. The company is based in Paris and maintains additional offices in the USA, United Kingdom, Israel, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and Taiwan. Sequans supplies subscriber station and base station chips for fixed and mobile WiMAX based on IEEE 802.16, offering all‑in‑one solutions with full MAC and PHY functionality. Its product portfolio enables equipment makers to build femto, pico, micro and multi‑sector macro base stations, outdoor and indoor subscriber terminals, home gateways and mobile devices. The company plans to use the new funding to strengthen its market foothold, expand international customer support centers and launch a next wave of chips to maintain technology leadership. Management says the financing is intended to carry the company until it is ready for an IPO. Sequans emphasizes strategic partnerships with operators and equipment vendors as part of its go‑to‑market approach. Existing strategic investors include equipment vendors Motorola and Alcatel‑Lucent.

No current team members are available.