Sivers to spin out photonics division into a SPAC
Sivers Semiconductors in Sweden is looking to spin out its photonics division into a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) to take advantage of the hype in AI.
Sivers, which has a strong RF business, has entered into a non-binding letter of intent to merge its Sivers Photonics subsidiary with byNordic Acquisition and would be listed in the US.
The deal would create a standalone, publicly traded photonics company. However many SPAC deals in the semiconductor industry have failed to deliver, and byNordic has had several issues with the US regulators over recent months and is awaiting the results of an appeal against its removal from the Nasdaq stock exchange.
The Sivers Photonics subsidiary is one of the world’s advanced suppliers of semiconductor photonic devices with a particular focus on indium phosphide (InP) laser sources based on the acquisition of CST Global in Glasgow, Scotland, in 2017. The division develops and manufactures customizable lasers are aimed at high-growth artificial intelligence infrastructure and sensing applications for data centres, consumer healthcare and automotive LIDAR and had previously looked at a joint venture for a photonics fab.
It currently has approximately 80% of its net revenue in the US and once the merger is finalized, the company plans to establish headquarters in Silicon Valley with the manufacturing operations remaining in the UK.
The photonics subsidiary has developed a unique portfolio of technologies underpinned by 25+ years of research and development with three issued patents and 16 patents pending across the US, UK, Canada and the World Intellectual Property Organization and has 80 staff.
Demand for AI is set to drive a reduction in power consumption for data centres, and silicon photonics is seen as key for lower power chip-to-chip connectivity.Sivers Photonics currently has development contracts to develop unique, high-performance lasers for several leading SiPh providers, such as Ayar Labs, and is in discussion with several leading AI companies, including hyperscalers.
Consumer biometric sensors using photonic lasers are also enabling wearable healthcare products for new applications ranging from tracking personal fitness to monitoring human biometrics and point-of-care solutions. Over the past few years, a single customer has invested over $18m in development contracts with Sivers Photonics to refine and optimize lasers for biometric sensors.
While this market remains in its early stages of development, Sivers Photonics believes it has a competitive advantage in supplying sophisticated photonic bio-sensors to this growing market.
“We believe the potential for AI Photonics is immense yet overshadowed by the equally exciting Sivers’ Wireless business unit. With the attractive opportunity for silicon photonics in AI infrastructure and the emerging demand for photonic biometric sensors, we feel now is the right time to shine a light on this business unit as a standalone entity to gain access to the U.S. capital markets and create an opportunity for our shareholders to participate in its potential future success,” said Bami Bastani, chair of Sivers Semiconductor.
“At the same time, we also look to capitalize on the success of the Sivers’ Wireless business unit and the demand for our leading-edge mmWave beamformer solutions for satellite and 5G, which has gained substantial traction with customers in these developing markets over the last several years, enabling us to create a fully fabless and less capital-intensive company that will remain listed under Sivers Semiconductors.”
After the spin-off, the remaining wireless business will consist of a portfolio of mmWave beamformer front-end integrated circuits, RF transceivers, repeaters, and software algorithms for optimum mmWave RF performance for satellite and 5G Infrastructure.
This wireless business saw net revenue growth of 155 percent in 2023, reaching approximately $15 million. These markets are developing rapidly, and Sivers has secured a number of contracts and design wins that are projected to drive significant product revenue growth over the next three to five years.
www.sivers-semiconductors.com; www.bynordic.se
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