GainSpan raises $18 million from Intel Capital, others

LONDON – GainSpan Corp., a developer of embedded Wi-Fi chips and modules, has raised $18 million in a Series C round of funding. Hatteras Funds, based in New York and North Carolina, and Mobile Internet Capital, based in Japan, joined in the round along with existing investors Opus Capital, In-Q-Tel, Intel Capital, New Venture Partners, Sigma Partners and Camp Ventures.

GainSpan (San Jose, Calif.) said it would use the money to develop its next Wi-Fi chip. And the Series C round brings the amount of money raised by GainSpan to more than $56 million since its formation in 2006 as spin-off from Intel Corp.

In-Q-Tel is the investment arm of the Cental Intelligence Agency.

GainSpan said it has experienced "significant" quarter-to-quarter growth in sales and design wins during 2011, partly as a result of Wi-Fi being accepted increasingly as the technology of choice for the Internet of Things. The company did not quantify the progress.

"GainSpan is clearly poised to capitalize on what has become a massive move to connect things to the Internet," said Hideaki Yajima, executive director of Mobile Internet Capital Inc., in a statement issued by GainSpan.

Matt Lesesky of Hatteras Funds said: "We think the company has the potential to help transform the practice of medicine by enabling remote health and wellness services on a wide scale."

GainSpan entered the Silicon 60, EE Times' list of emerging startup companies at version 7.0 in February 2008. The latest edition of the Silicon 60 is version 12.5, which is the subject of a detailed technology and employment digital edition which can be accessed via http://e.ubmelectronics.com/Silicon60/index.html


Related links and articles:

www.gainspan.com

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GainSpan raises $18 million from Intel Capital, others