ETF Partners, Inventure and Vito Ventures invest in IoT connectivity company Wirepas
ETF Partners, Inventure and Vito Ventures have invested €4.5 million in Wirepas, a Finnish software company that has solved a major Internet of Things connectivity challenge. In total, Wirepas has raised €10 million in 2016 including loan agreements and an earlier series A investment from Inventure and Vito Ventures.
The Internet of Things requires very low-cost, large-scale networks that allow millions of devices to be connected. De-centralized networks, in which each node relays data for the network, fit the bill perfectly, except that developing scalability and reliability have proven challenging – so far.
Wirepas Connectivity solves this problem. It is cost efficient, reliable, low-power and scalable up to millions of nodes. The de-centralized device network enables customers to leave all network formation, control and maintenance for the network itself. In addition, the network is self-healing, and automatically selects the best available radio channels and time slots locally. This gives quantifiable savings in installation, extensions, updates and maintenance.
Wirepas focuses on large-scale industrial IoT applications such as smart metering, sensoring, beaconing, logistics, asset tracking and lighting. Wirepas customers and partners include Aidon, Haltian, Nordic Semiconductor, Silicon Laboratories, Telit and u-blox. The largest deployment, which is ongoing, comprises 1.6 million smart electricity meters in Norway.
Patrick Sheehan, managing partner of ETF Partners, said: “Wirepas is a true game-changer for the Internet of Things. Its proven technology releases the huge potential of IoT, ensuring a low-cost, low-powered, scalable and robust platform for connecting the world around us. We are delighted to be supporting Teppo and his team through the next exciting phase of their company’s development.”
The market for the Internet of Things and device connectivity is developing rapidly. Both the number of different applications and the volume of connected devices are growing fast. One of the key enablers for this development is connectivity. Wirepas estimates, based on market studies, that in 2022 about 15 billion devices will be connected with non-cellular technologies and out of these about three billion represent the annual addressable market for Wirepas.
Teppo Hemiä, CEO of Wirepas, said: “This investment from ETF Partners is a further endorsement of Wirepas’ growth trajectory and ambition as we expand internationally. Wirepas’ solution cuts across countless applications and industries. ETF’s experience in the Internet of Things combined with its international network and broad-based view of sustainability through innovation makes it a valuable partner in the next stage of Wirepas’ growth.”
Wirepas will use ETF Partners’ growth capital investment to fund its further growth and product development.
Wirepas was founded in 2010 as a spinoff from Tampere University, where it was part of a research programme to connect an unlimited amount of environmental sensors wirelessly. Since 2014, the company has provided a hardware-independent radio communications protocol based on a de-centralized network topology, using a horizontal software licensing model. Wirepas shareholders include founders, Inventure Investment Fund from Finland, Vito Ventures from Germany, ETF Partners from the UK, management shareholders and private investors. Patrick Sheehan will join the Wirepas board.
Notes to editors
ETF Contact
Ross.butler@ten50advisers.com; +44 (0) 77 33 33 19 28
Wirepas Contact
Sebastian Linko, sebastian.linko(at)Wirepas.com, +358 (0)400 236607
Wirepas in Brief
Wirepas is focused on providing the most reliable, optimized, scalable and easy to use device connectivity for its customers. Wirepas Connectivity is a de-centralized radio communications protocol that can be used in any device, with any radio chip and on any radio band. With Wirepas Connectivity there is no need for traditional repeaters because every wireless device is a smart router of the network. The connected devices form the network - easy as that. Wirepas has its headquarters in Tampere, Finland and offices in Brazil, France, Germany, South Korea, the UK and the United States.
Things connected – Naturally
About ETF Partners
ETF Partners supports talented entrepreneurs and management teams with investment capital and
experience. Our funds come from institutional investors, global corporations and family offices. We
create value by investing in technology companies that make a difference. We call it ‘sustainability
through innovation’.
For more insight into ETF Partners’ view on the internet of things, read our latest investor briefing.
Environmental Technologies Fund and Environmental Technologies Fund 2 L.P. is supported by the European Union through the ‘Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme’ (CIP).
Sustainability through innovation - www.etfpartners.capital
Inventure in Brief
Inventure is a leading early-stage venture capital company in the Nordics and Baltics. Inventure invests in innovative and fast-growing companies, led by exceptional entrepreneurs that are willing to disrupt their industries. Inventure’s team is a great mix of experienced entrepreneurs, industry experts, and investment professionals committed to help start-ups build global success stories. Inventure operates in Helsinki, Stockholm, and Shanghai. For more information, please visit www.inventure.fi.
Vito in brief
Vito Ventures is a new global early stage Venture Capital fund investing in the fields of Internet of Things, Enterprise- and Energy-Tech. Based in Munich and following the fundamental values of German Engineering, Vito Ventures backs rigorous executors and creative visionaries building transformative businesses models. By leveraging its industrial investor base, Vito Ventures helps entrepreneurs get access to extensive resources and deep technological domain expertise. www.vito.vc