The semiconductor industry in Singapore plays a pivotal role in the global chip supply chain, contributing approximately 7 per cent to the nation’s GDP. Renowned for its robust ecosystem, the industry includes significant investments from global leaders like Applied Materials, GlobalFoundries, and Soitec. Singapore is home to over 60 semiconductor companies, supported by a highly skilled workforce and advanced infrastructure.
Recent developments underline Singapore’s strategic importance. For instance, GlobalFoundries is building a US$4 billion fabrication plant, while Applied Materials is expanding its Singapore footprint with an advanced facility in Tampines, slated to open in 2024. This facility will focus on developing innovative semiconductor technologies, including 3D chip integration, in partnership with local research institutes.
Similarly, Soitec is enhancing its operations in Singapore to meet the growing demand for energy-efficient chips in sectors such as automotive and mobile communications.
Singapore’s neutral geopolitical stance and efficient logistics system make it an attractive hub for chipmakers looking to diversify their supply chains. Government initiatives, such as tax incentives and R&D support, further bolster the sector’s growth, positioning Singapore as a critical node in addressing global semiconductor demands.
We have compiled a list of top startups that transforms the island nation’s chip industry below:
Silicon Box
Silicon Box aims to bring affordable, high-performance, power-optimised, scalable solutions that enable next-gen large language models (LLM), generative AI, automotive, data centres and mobile computing. The startup enables chiplet architecture, allowing chip designers freedom from the constraints of a single, monolithic chip for processing. By leveraging multiple smaller chips interconnected in a single package, chip designers can create the equivalent of a “system-on-a-chip” (SoC) in a package.
Founding year: 2021
Total funding raised: US$407.6 million
Investors: BRV Capital Management, Event Horizon Capital, Hillhouse Capital Management,
Lam Capital, Maverick Capital, Praesidium Capital, TDK Ventures, UMC Capital, Tata,
Grandfull Convergence Fund, Ally Capital Holdings, and Ignite Innovation.
Divergent Technologies
Divergent Technologies provides turn-key operation, technology consultation, equipment trading, design and services to the worldwide semiconductor industries. It distributes MPI Corporation’s Advance Semiconductor Test System probing solutions for South Asia Pacific, Korea and China.
Founding year: 2024
Total funding raised: US$330 million
Investor: Hexagon.
Zero-Error Systems (ZES)
ZES develops space-grade IC solutions. The company offers QML-qualified, gain flight legacy, and is radiation-hardened for deep space. It also provides autonomous vehicle products. It provides various pending patents regarding the development of IC solutions for autonomous vehicles.
Founding year: 2019
Total funding raised: US$9.35 million
Investor: Airbus Ventures, Dart Family Office, Nanyang Technological University, Seeds Capital,
Silicon Solution Partners, and SEEDS Capital.
Endofotonics
Endophotonics is a medical device company that has developed an endoscopic system based on Raman Spectroscopy. The integrated molecular diagnostic system (IMDX) consists of a Raman Spectroscope, a proprietary specially designed fibre-optic confocal Raman endoscopic probe that comprises a central light delivery fibre for laser light delivery and collection fibres for in vivo tissue Raman signal collection of tissue spectra and can be inserted into the instrument channel of conventional endoscopes and a proprietary control software that enables epithelial molecular information to be extracted and analysed in real-time.
Founding year: 2014
Total funding raised: US$8.5 million
Investors: ZIG Ventures and SEEDS Capital.
Atomionics
It provides Quantum sensors for environmental sensing applications. The company’s product is a gravimeter named “Gravio” which senses the underground infrastructure for land, sea, etc. It can be attached to vehicles for surveying lands, etc. The product is said to provide navigation assistance where GPS doesnt work.
Founding year: 2018
Total funding raised: US$1863640
Investors: Paspalis, Wavemaker Partners, SGInnovate, Cap Vista, Entrepreneur First, 500 Durians, and RISE.
Also Read: Driving semiconductor innovation: AMD’s vision for AI and sustainability in Singapore
Nanolumi
Nanolumi is an advanced materials company that provides optical materials and optical material platforms for challenging but diverse applications. It uses a host of proprietary nano- and molecular technologies.
Founding year: 2018
Total funding raised: US$1 million
Investor: NUS Enterprise
Microtube Technologies
Impact Sensors is a manufacturer of impact sensors. The firm develops stretchable microfiber sensing elements that can be embedded in wearable items. These elements have applications in fitness, healthcare, augmented and virtual reality, and metaverse.
Founding year: 2018
Total funding raised: US$809,800
Investor: Greenwillow Capital Management
Attonics Systems
Attonics Systems, a spinoff from the National University of Singapore, has developed miniature, ultra-fast spectrometers that can be used in areas such as medical diagnostics, environmental screening, and defense and security.
Founding year: 2015
Total funding raised: US$700,000
Investors: SEEDS Capital, Apsara Capital, Moveon, Wavemaker Partners, and Venturecraft.
GridComm
It provides power line communication solutions. These solutions transform meters, streetlights, homes, industrial buildings, and other appliances into energy-aware smart devices that react to grid conditions. Additionally, it offers street lighting solutions, light management software, and components.
Founding year: 2012
Total funding raised: US$555291
Investors: Get2Volume, LCR Hallcrest, Unreasonable Capital, Ontrack Advisory, Miniata Management, Futurity, TYLT Ventures, Tornado Sprayers, and Bismarck.
Plunify
Pulnify is a platform that focuses on the FPGA design flow of the semiconductor chip design industry. It uses big data and machine learning to manage the design of FPGA flows. Plunify’s products include the EDAxtend platform, a cloud platform that integrates chip design flows, and Intime, software that solves FPGA design problems through machine learning without the need to modify source code.
Founding year: 2009
Total funding raised: US$478,970
Investors: Kumpulan Modal Perdana, Lanza techVentures, Get2Volume, and Solidum Solutions.
Also Read: From keypads to chips: How Polymatech advances semiconductors with sustainability at the core
Nanoveu
Nanoveu provides 3D Displays and screen solutions based on nanofilms. Its technology is based on thin film-based nanostructures that shape our vision when viewed through high-resolution smart devices. Its screen protector can transform any mobile device into a portable 3D screen.
Founding year: 2012
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: Bergen Asset Management and GIG
WaveScan Technologies
WaveScan provides cloud and AI-enabled sensors for structural health monitoring of infrastructures. It offers a suite of NDT sensors mounted on drones for autonomous inspection of buildings and infrastructure facilities to detect cracks, corrosion in pipelines, pests, rodents behind walls, and wiring defects, among other things. The firm also performs AI-enabled analytics and generates inspection reports with defect type and location.
Founding year: 2018
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: Silicon Solution Partners, Enterprise Singapore, She1K, Plug and Play Tech Center, Leave a Nest, Plug and Play APAC, and SEEDS Capital.
LightSpeed Photonics
The firm manufactures optoelectronic systems, designing and developing modular processors and interconnects for data centres and near-edge computers.
Founding year: 2021
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: YourNest, GrowX Ventures, Entrepreneur First, Luminate, Enterprise Singapore, and 8X Ventures.
Core Semiconductor
Core Semiconductor provides IPs for SoCs and ASICs for IoT applications. Backed by the security of the QTUM blockchain, it has developed an open-source hardware platform that provides access to necessary tools for developing IoT applications. The firm has created J-Core, an Open-Architecture CPU core, which serves as a foundation stone for its SoC platform.
Founding year: 2018
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: SpaceChain
Silicon Cloud International
Silicon Cloud International provides secure cloud computing solutions for semiconductor design and collaboration. It also provides a cloud-based scalable computing environment for universities and research institutes.
Founding year: 2013
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: SPRING Singapore, Get2Volume, Singtel, CyLon, and TYLT Ventures.
MEMSing
It is the provider of IoT-based pipeline monitoring systems. The firm offers underwater acoustic sensing modules for water and oil pipeline leak detection. It also offers technologies for data processing, analysis, security, and communication for low-power wide-area networks.
Founding year: 2018
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: Accelerate Technology, JCS Venture Lab, and Transfong Ventures.
Niyam
Niyam AI is a cutting-edge technology company that provides AI-powered hardware design validation solutions for the electronics manufacturing industry. Its platform offers real-time design validation, risk assessment, and netlist and Gerber simulations to streamline the design process. This enables manufacturers to reduce development cycles and costs and fix supply chain issues more efficiently.
Founding year: 2024
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investor: Iterative.
FlexoSense
FlexoSense provides a flexible sensor that can be customized into different forms for industrial applications. It claims that the sensors have the ability to be customized for measuring dynamic pressures & strain with adjustable range, precision, accuracy, and resolution. It can be used as an enabler in sensing for healthcare devices, robotics, and consumer electronics.
Founding year: 2016
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: PIER71 and Modern Aging.
Also Read: From lab to fab: Inside Applied Ventures’s stage-agnostic deep tech investments
Cloptech
Cloptech develops a 60GHz multi-gigabit wireless solution designed based on IEEE 802.11ad WiFi standard and WirelessGigabit Alliance MAC/PHY specification. It has up to 4.2 Gbps peak data rate and enables uncompressed HD video streaming. The firm supports 802.11ad IP networking. It has collaboration with Singapore Government Research Agency A*STAR for R&D and partners with industry players to develop customised solutions.
Founding year: 2015
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: NTUitive, Silicon Catalyst, Accton Technology Corporation, Seeds Capital, IncuVest, and PlanetSpark.
Hertzwell
Hertzwell offers hyper-resolution radar for self-driving cars. The company claims to be developing a low-powered radar system that can track machine movements and even human gestures to millimetre-scale precision. It also offers solutions for industrial robots and VR/AR technologies.
Founding year: 2017
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: Entrepreneur First and Vertex Ventures.
EnvironSens
EnvironSens provides connected water quality monitoring systems. It develops a biosensor-based water toxicity monitoring technology. The startup has developed a proprietary solution based on microbial electrochemical sensor technologies, which can continuously detect the illegal or accidental discharge of heavy metals into trade effluent wastewater, which is liquid waste discharged from business or industrial processes, water bodies, and sewer networks in real-time. It collects and analyses toxic samples and the data is transmitted in real-time via a telecommunications system. Upon detection of heavy metals in the water, SMS alerts are sent to relevant personnel, to ensure immediate action to minimise downstream pollution.
Founding year: 2018
Total funding raised: Undisclosed
Investors: Imagine H2O, NUS Enterprise, JCS Venture Lab, and PIER71.
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