EnSilica, a leading chip maker of mixed signal application specific integrated circuits, announced that it has been awarded funding from the U.K. Space Agency under its Connectivity in Low-Earth Orbit (C-LEO) programme. Following a competitive selection process, EnSilica has been awarded £10.38 million over the next three-years for a development project pioneered by EnSilica.
EnSilica put forward in its application a compelling business case, supported by letters of interest from potential lead customers, to develop a family of semiconductor chips to support future generations of best-in-class, highly integrated, mass market satellite broadband user terminals. The terminals will be capable of connecting with various satellite constellations and will leverage advanced semiconductor technology. In addition, the project will provide a resilient and secure source of chips which is independent and not tied to specific satellite service operators.
The market potential for satellite user terminals is growing rapidly, as demonstrated by Starlink and is projected to reach c. US$16.5 billion by 20311. Each terminal requires hundreds of specialist chips to create an electronically steerable antenna.
The U.K. Space Agency’s C-LEO programme was launched last year and is designed to ensure that the U.K. space sector remains competitive in the rapidly evolving global market for LEO constellations. With a total funding pool of up to £160 million available over the next four years, the C-LEO programme supports the development of smarter satellites, enhanced hardware, AI-driven data delivery and improved inter-satellite connections.
This new project builds on EnSilica’s successful history of collaboration with the U.K. Space Agency and the European Space Agency, alongside other key satellite communications partnerships and the company’s own investment in the technology.
Paul Morris, EnSilica VP RF and Comms Business Unit, commented, “This is a great opportunity to accelerate our chipset development enabling us to extend our portfolio of chips for the satellite broadband market with a focus on providing a complete solution for user terminals while reducing cost and power. We are now engaged with the key European players and I’m sure this further backing from the U.K. Space Agency will help us garner global interest in the unique products we are developing.”
Ian Lankshear, EnSilica’s CEO, commented, “We are honoured and proud to have won this highly significant award from the U.K. Space Agency under the C-LEO programme, as we believe satellite communications is an incredibly important sector for EnSilica and one that is fast expanding globally. This funding will enable us to advance our technology and bring innovative solutions to the satellite broadband market, with the project expected to be hugely beneficial to society, offering resilient internet connectivity in times of crisis, as well as providing high speed internet connectivity in remote communities not well served by terrestrial networks. We welcome the ongoing support from the U.K. Space Agency, which provides the framework for EnSilica to develop the technology required to address a market worth many hundreds of millions.”