US-based metamaterials specialist Kymeta is set to raise US$20m in another funding round to continue developing its satellite communications antenna.
Existing investors including board member Bill Gates and Lux Capital are participating in the…
US-based metamaterials specialist Kymeta is set to raise US$20m in another funding round to continue developing its satellite communications antenna.
Existing investors including board member Bill Gates and Lux Capital are participating in the financing, helping to fund a technology that can steer antenna beams with no moving parts.
It comes as CEO Vern Fotheringham announces plans to step down at the end of the year so the group can gear up for its next phase of growth.
“It has been a privilege to lead Kymeta from its earliest stages through its successful market introduction,” said Fotheringham
“The company is well positioned to dramatically transform the satellite communications industry and I am incredibly proud of everything the team has accomplished.”
Its CTO and co-founder Nathan Kundtz has been appointed CEO on an interim basis while the board looks for a more permanent successor.
Kymeta was spun out of intellectual property and patent specialist Intellectual Ventures (IV) in August 2012, after completing a US$12m funding round.
The group raised a further US$50m in another round last year, shortly after announcing a deal with British MSS operator Inmarsat to develop a new satellite antenna. They aim to create a system to enable business jets of any size to access high-speed broadband connectivity globally through Inmarsat’s Global Xpress Ka-band service.
More recently Kymeta has been linked to the role it could play in helping microsatellite ventures like Greg Wyler’s WorldVu deploy vast numbers of antennas cheaply.
By eliminating the need for moving parts, Kymeta’s technology could result in flatter, thinner and lighter antennas and communication terminals.
