SCALINX, Leading Fabless Semiconductor in System-on-a-Chip Design, Secures €34 Million in Second Round Funding

Funding to Drive European Leadership in 5G and 6G Wireless Network Infrastructure, and Autonomous Driving

Paris, France -- January 10, 2024 – SCALINX, a fabless semiconductor company based in France and specializing in advanced mixed-signal chip design, has successfully concluded its second funding round, securing a global investment of €34 million. The funds will play a pivotal role in fueling the development of cutting-edge System-on-a-Chip (SoC) products and expanding the company’s customer base. With cumulative funding of €44.5 million to date, SCALINX is poised to transition from specialized markets to broader market segments, solidifying its unique European position in the design and supply of SoC solutions based on ultra-high-speed data converters, particularly needed in high-tech industries like 5G and 6G networks, and autonomous vehicles.

SCALINX new investors include the French State, through its “French Tech Souveraineté” fund program managed by Bpifrance (the French national investment bank), Go Capital, an independent management company, and Thales, a global leader in advanced technologies for Aerospace, Defense, Digital Identity & Security. Previous investors joining this second round include NCI WaterStart Capital, an accelerator fund and investment firm, Normandie Participations, the investment fund of the Normandy Region, BNP Paribas Development (a private equity subsidiary of BNP Paribas bank), and Unexo (the investment arm of Crédit Agricole bank), as well as other private investors.

The proceeds will be used to expand business operations, with a particular focus on the Wireless Communication market in which SCALINX aims at developing new products and broadening its customer base. New markets will be explored, notably in the Automotive sector. The company will continue to consolidate its position in historical markets by undertaking new projects in Space & Defense and launching a product family in Test & Measurement. The business plan will be accompanied by a doubling of SCALINX headcount over the next 24 months and office space expansion to accommodate the growing workforce.

Hussein Fakhoury, SCALINX Founder and CEO, states, "This new investment round validates the interest of the Wireless Infrastructure market in our wideband, low-power data-conversion SCCORE™ technology. Our SoC product roadmap will empower telecom players to deliver ultra-high capacity, multi-gigabit links over longer distances, optimizing Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) for microwave, millimeter-wave, and multi-band equipment. This investment marks a crucial milestone for our growth, and we are excited about the strong endorsements from new and existing stakeholders."

“We are delighted to back SCALINX, whose expertise in highly integrated mixed-signal products is unique in Europe," says Marion Aubry, Investment Director at Bpifrance. "SCALINX has a proven track record in defense and aerospace, test and measurement, and communications, and we expect it to grow rapidly in these markets.”

Bruno Dizengremel, venture partner from GO Capital, adds, “We are proud to materialize our financial support and contribute our experience in semiconductors to SCALINX, a team that has demonstrated its global leadership in the field of high-speed Data-Converters Integrated Circuits design. Furthermore, having internationally recognized design teams, SCALINX perfectly meets the strategy of our new OV4 investment fund to support ambitious deep tech projects in our territories.”

Philippe Keryer, Thales Executive Vice President, Strategy, Research & Technology, also highlights: “We are pleased to support the next development round of SCALINX, a long-time valued technology partner for Thales. This investment will enable the France-based deep tech startup to further scale its Integrated Circuits design activity, strategic for European sovereignty, especially in defense and space markets in which Thales has a strong stake.”

About Bpifrance:

Bpifrance is the French national investment bank. It finances businesses – at every stage of their development – through loans, guarantees, equity investments and export insurance. Bpifrance also provides extra financial services (training, consultancy) to help entrepreneurs meet their challenges (innovation, export…).

About GO Capital:

GO Capital, an independent management company, is a major player in seed capital and venture capital. Established in Brittany, Pays de la Loire, Normandy, Centre-Val de Loire, and Nouvelle Aquitaine regions, GO Capital contributes to financing responsible innovation in those territories. Made up of investors with complementary sector experience, the team has a solid track record in DeepTech. GO Capital has nearly 350 million euros under management and mainly finances technological leaders in the digital sector, health, and the industry of the future.

About THALES:

Thales (Euronext Paris: HO) is a global leader in advanced technologies within three domains: Defense & Security, Aeronautics & Space, and Digital Identity & Security. It develops products and solutions that help make the world safer, greener, and more inclusive. The Group invests close to €4 billion a year in Research & Development, particularly in key areas such as quantum technologies, Edge computing, 6G, and cybersecurity. Thales has 77,000 employees in 68 countries. In 2022, the Group generated sales of €17.6 billion.

About SCCORE™:

The advent of digital sensors and the need for multi-band multi-carrier transceivers is pushing suppliers of mixed-signal SoC to integrate even more analog-to-digital converter (ADC) and digital-to-analog converter (DAC) cores along with extensive digital processing while demand for wider analog bandwidth and reduced power consumption is continuously growing. SCALINX SoC solutions based on proprietary Smart Conversion CORE (SCCORE™) Data Conversion technology address these needs.

About SCALINX:

SCALINX is a fabless semiconductor company specializing in the design and marketing of highly integrated mixed-signal products that bridge physical and digital worlds. SCALINX's proprietary Smart Conversion CORE (SCCORE™) technology enables power-efficient Integrated Circuits with on-chip conditioning, data conversion, and digital processing of wideband signals.