US-based Skylo Technologies has raised $37 million for its non-terrestrial cellular 5G network (NTN), including from the investment arms of Intel, BMW, and Samsung, among others. The new investment will go to expand its satellite network and business operations, as it looks to load cellular traffic from smartphones, wearables, and IoT devices. It cited the automotive, agriculture, energy, and transportation sectors as primary customer targets.
The new investors are Intel Capital, Innovation Endeavors, BMW i Ventures, Samsung Catalyst, Next47, and Seraphim Space. David Johnson of Intel Capital has joined the Skylo board. Skylo said it will spend the money on the “brightest minds in the industry”, and on “marketing efforts and technological developments”, as it pursues new capabilities, new verticals, and an expanded geographic reach.
The Skylo NTN network, “grounded in 3GPP specifications”, has been developed around a so-called ‘standards-plus’ approach, where the US firm has added “technical specifications to improve the functionality, interoperability, and ubiquity of the satellite-based network over and above the 3GPP standards”. It is offering direct-to-device 5G-based cellular connectivity via mobile operators and other solution vendors in the US, Canada, and Europe.
Devices connected over satellite are managed and served by Skylo’s satellite virtual RAN (vRAN). Skylo has deals with chipset makers Qualcomm, Samsung, MediaTek, and Sony, plus various device makers and mobile carriers (“such as Deutsche Telekom”); it is also integrating with other satellite operators to enable the service on licensed spectrum and existing satellite assets.
Parth Trivedi, chief executive and co-founder at Skylo, said: “We’re immensely proud to lead this new chapter in direct-to-device satellite connectivity, supported by an incredible consortium of investors. Their commitment helps make Skylo’s standards-based service the default choice for the NTN ecosystem. This round accelerates our carrier partnerships and supports all top device makers adopting our standards-based solution.”
Johnson at Intel Capital said: “As lead investors, we recognize the transformative potential of Skylo’s scalable approach for 5G satellite-to-device communications. Since our first meeting with Parth and the team, we’ve been impressed with the extensive industry ecosystem support they’ve received in delivering a complete end-to-end connectivity service for high volume device categories at low cost.”
