NanoBridge Semiconductor, Inc. secures
series A financing from Japan Industrial
Partners and NEC for l aunching full-scalebusinessT o k y o , D e c e m b e r 1 , 2 0 2 0 - N a n o B r i d g e S e m i c o n d u c t o r , Inc.
(NBS), w h i c h d e s i g n s a n d m a n u f a c t u r e s a d v a n c e d c i r c u i t s a n dconducts

IP-licensing

salesusing

NanoBridge®(*1),

aresistance-change switching technology for semiconductors ,today announced that it has issued series A preferred stock toJapan Industrial Partners, Inc., NEC Corporation (NEC; TSE:6701), and other companies to raise approximately 130 millionyen.

NanoBridge Semiconductor, Inc. logo
NBS is a venture company established by NEC researchers in
September 2019. NanoBridge is a techn ology to control thecreation or destruction of nanometer sized metal bridges in asolid electrolyte through the application of voltage, thereby
realizing on and off-switch status. It is attracting attention as
an ideal technology for FPGA (*2) and memories that canrepeatedly

rewritecircuits .

This

is

because

NanoBridge

consumes less power, as it does not require power to maintain1

an on or off status, and is highly resistant to both radiationand extreme temperatures.
NEC

has

an

establishedcommercialization

ofhistory

NanoBridge ,ofandpromoting

decidedto

thetransfer

NanoBridge-related intellectual property to NBS and conduct a
spin-off in order to further drive the growth of this business.
Through

thisfundraising,

NBS

will

demonstrateits

technologies in areas where radiation resistance is essential,
such as aerospace and comm unications infrastructure. At thesame time, NBS will develop a broad range of NanoBrdige
businesses for domestic and international manufacturers , suchas IoT device and automo bile manufacturers, while aiming toachieve sales of 5 billion yen in 2025.
“The discovery of the atomic switch, based on the movementof atoms rather than electrons, was a major breakthrough inb a s i c s c i e n c e , ” s a i d Richard E. Dyck, D i r e c t o r , J a p a n I n d u s t r i a l
P a r t n e r s , I n c . “ T h e t e a m a t N anoB r i d g e , a f t e r t w o d e c a d e s o f
skilledandfocusedengineering,has

transformed

thisbreakthrough into the realm of practical application.

It isexciting to see t he NanoBridge atomic switch can now be
manufactured

economicallyandinvolume,on

standard

production equipment. ”“UndertheMid-term

strengthening
commercializing

itsManagementbusiness

Plandevelopmentcompetitive

2020,

NEC

capabilities

technologies ,”saidisandOsamuFujikawa, Senior Vice President, NEC Corporation . “We haveinvested in NBS to supp ort the enthusiasm of our research ers

2for taking on new challenges and driving the advancement ofoutstanding NEC technologies into the worldwide marketplace. ”***Notes(*1) NanoBridge(R) is a resistance-change type switch developed by
NEC together with the National Institute for Materials Science. By
controlling the creation or destruction of bridges formed by metal
atoms in a solid electrolyte through the application of voltage, its
resistance changes significantly, functioning as a wiring switch. The
switch's resistance value is maintained even when the power supply
is turned off, giving it non-volatility. Circuit non-volatility is aneffective way to achieve reduced power consumption in ICT devices
and systems. NanoBridge(R) is a registered trademark of NEC.
(*2) Field Programmable Gate Array. Logic LSI design technology for
rewritable field programmable gate arrays.

About NanoBridge Semiconductor, Inc.
NanoBridge Semiconductor, Inc. (NBS) has established in 2019 atTsukuba to “Deliver ICT applications everywhere with Nanobridge
technology”. NBS provides low-power and rad-hard programmable
AIoT terminals and nonvolatile memory through NanoBridge . At NBS,customers come first. NBS strives to build deep relationships withcustomers and works together for opening up New Normal Society.
For more information, visit NBS at https://nanobridgesemi.com/
About Japan Industrial Partners , I n c .
JapanIndustrial

Pa r t n e r s(JIP)

isa

privatemanagement company established in 2002.

3equityfund

JIP has strongtrack records in supporting strategic carve -outs that realize
g r o w t h p o t e n t i a l a n d e n c o u r a g e a u t o n o m o u s g r o w t h . J I P ’s m a i nphilosophy in investing in Japanese companies is to realize
continuous growth of the business by bringing better products
and services to the users and customers and by creating ap r o d u c t i v e a n d r e w a r d i n g w o r k p l a c e f o r i t s e m p l oy e e s .

About NEC Corporation
NEC Corporation has established itself as a leade r in the integrationof IT and network technologies while promoting the brand statementof “Orchestrating a brighter world.” NEC enables businesses andcommunities to adapt to rapid changes taking place in both society
and the market as it provides for the social values of safety, security,fairness and efficiency to promote a more sustainable world whereeveryone has the chance to reach their full potential. For more
information, visit NEC at https://www.nec.com

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