BigEndian Semiconductors, a fabless semiconductor design startup, has announced the successful closure of a $3 million funding round led by Vertex Ventures SEA & India, with additional participation from other strategic investors. This significant funding boost is set to propel the company’s growth and development in the semiconductor sector.
The newly acquired funds will be directed towards expanding BigEndian’s engineering team, bolstering research and development capabilities, and scaling operations to address the rising demand for advanced surveillance technology both in India and globally.
Despite India being home to 20-25 percent of the global semiconductor design talent, the country has historically had a limited presence in the global semiconductor market. However, recent shifts in the global supply chain and favorable policies promoting indigenous semiconductor design are creating promising opportunities for innovation within India’s semiconductor industry.
Sunil Kumar, co-founder and CEO of BigEndian, expressed his enthusiasm about the funding, stating, “This investment enables us to accelerate our journey of disrupting the value chain with open, secure, and collaborative technology. Besides our SoCs, we are also building an advanced, truly Indian ecosystem with upstream and downstream innovations, which would be transformative in the nascent Indian semiconductors industry.”
The investment is poised to fast-track BigEndian’s efforts to develop semiconductors from India for the global market, including their forthcoming surveillance system-on-chip (SoC) solution. This move is expected to further advance the growth of India’s expanding semiconductor ecosystem.
Ben Mathias, managing partner of Vertex Ventures SEA & India, commented on the investment, saying, “Realignment of electronics supply chains has provided a rare opportunity for India to become a global leader in semiconductors. We are excited to be a part of this macro trend, starting with our investment in BigEndian. Their approach to developing a surveillance SoC aligns perfectly with the growing demand for advanced security solutions globally, and the founding team has all the elements that point to BigEndian becoming a future leader in the global semiconductor industry.”
BigEndian’s founding team brings extensive experience in semiconductor design, having previously built multiple SoCs from India. Their expertise includes leadership roles in top global organizations such as ARM, Intel, Broadcom, and Cypress, as well as in innovative startups like Beceem and Arcus.