Meridian Innovation Secures US$6 Million in Funding

SINGAPORE, June 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Meridian Innovation Pte Ltd, the pioneer developer of low cost, mass producible thermal sensors, today announced it raised US$6 million in its latest round of financing. Alongside existing investor Creative Technology Ltd, Excelpoint's investment arm, PlanetSpark and SEEDS Capital participated in this latest round, bringing the total investment to date in Meridian Innovation to more than US$10 million.

This round of investment will further enable and accelerate Meridian's market penetration and product development. In the past 2.5 years since Meridian's start in November 2016, Meridian has grown from 4 employees in a single location to more than 25 employees across 4 locations globally. Meridian is uniquely positioned to address new emerging markets which are rapidly adopting low cost thermal sensors. These emerging markets comprise Smart Appliances, IoT devices, ADAS, AI-assisted Heat Failure Analyzers and Security, and Medical & Safety products. Both investors and customers are embracing Meridian's compelling patented CMOS thermal sensors due to its salient benefits of low power and low cost owing to its mass manufacturable CMOS process.

"Creative has always invested in innovative technology companies that have the potential to transform industries," said Sim Wong Hoo, CEO of Creative Technology. "Meridian Innovation's patented CMOS LWIR sensors can play a major part in bringing a new sensing modality to the consumer market at an affordable price point."

"The market potential for Meridian's thermal sensors is great as it can be incorporated into many commercial and consumer applications, which are synergistic with Excelpoint's focus segments and vast regional distribution network in Asia," said Albert Phuay Yong Hen, Chairman and Group Chief Executive Officer of Excelpoint Technology Ltd.

"Meridian's low cost thermal sensors have multiple applications across different sectors. We believe that this innovation can be mass manufactured and will be transformative for many industries worldwide. SEEDS Capital looks forward to the growth of Meridian Innovation. As part of our startup ecosystem, we will continue to support its innovation journey," said Geoffrey Yeo, General Manager of SEEDS Capital. 

"Meridian is honored to have Creative, Excelpoint and SEEDS Capital as investors. We are also excited and privileged to work with such visionaries who are willing to back such disruptive technology with their bold commitment," said Hock Leow, CEO and Co-Founder of Meridian Innovation. "Our recent showings at CES in Las Vegas and Shanghai have garnered many potential global customers. We are committed to constant innovation and rapid deployment of new products to expanding consumer and commercial markets. This week, we will be participating in the MWC Shanghai show and will be demonstrating our Bobcat module working in both Android and iPhone environment. We will be shipping our first generation SenXorTM  device in July."

About Meridian Innovation

Meridian Innovation, headquartered in Singapore, is a pioneering developer of advanced Complementary Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor ("CMOS") Thermal Imaging solutions with operations also in Hong Kong, USA and UK. Meridian Innovation is committed to the development of cost effective and high-performance Thermal Imaging Sensor-based solutions for commercial and consumer applications that will enable safer and better living. Meridian's technology utilizes a unique patented approach in fabricating MEMS LWIR sensors based on CMOS. Combining a proprietary wafer-level vacuum packaging allows Meridian to produce their sensors at lower cost and mass producible volume.

For more information on Meridian, please visit https://www.meridianinno.com/

About Creative

Creative is a worldwide leader in digital entertainment products. Famous for its Sound Blaster® sound cards and for driving the multimedia revolution - which established a user base of 400 million - Creative drives digital entertainment with cutting-edge audio solutions that include premium wireless speakers, wireless headphones, powerful audiophile-grade digital amplifiers, and next-generation home-theatre systems. Aiming at the new mobile networked generation by bridging the worlds of the computer, smartphones and tablets, Creative continues to reinvent the Sound Blaster, with its ground-breaking Sound Blaster Roar series and USB-audio class of products such as the Sound Blaster X7.

In 2018, Creative launched an all-new game-changing technology for headphones called Super X-Fi® Headphone Holography. This technology uses computational audio to recreate the listening experience of a high-end multi-speaker system in a professional studio and delivers the same expansive experience - with the same original depth, detail, realism, and spaciousness - in headphones. Super X-Fi further uses Artificial Intelligence to compute a custom audio profile based on a person's unique anthropometry. Super X-Fi has won multiple accolades worldwide, including an unprecedented 15 awards at CES 2019.

For more information on Creative, please visit www.creative.com

About PlanetSpark Pte. Ltd.

PlanetSpark Pte. Ltd. ("PlanetSpark"), an entrepreneurial and investment arm of Excelpoint Technology Ltd., invests in, supports and collaborates with promising early- to mid-stage start-ups in Singapore and Asia that are related to the Internet of Things ("IoT") ecosystem.

For more information on PlanetSpark, please visit www.planetspark.com.sg

About Excelpoint Technology Ltd.

Excelpoint Technology Ltd. (the "Company") and its subsidiaries ("Excelpoint" or the "Group") are one of the leading regional business-to-business ("B2B") platforms providing quality electronic components, engineering design services and supply chain management to original equipment manufacturers ("OEMs"), original design manufacturers ("ODMs") and electronics manufacturing services ("EMS") in the Asia Pacific region. Excelpoint Technology Ltd. has been recognized in the Top 25 Global Electronics Distributors and Top Global Distributors lists by EBN (a premier online community for global supply chain professionals) and EPSNews (a US premier news, information and data portal and resource center for electronics and supply chain industries) respectively.

Excelpoint works closely with its principals to create innovative solutions to complement its customers' products and solutions. Aimed at improving its customers' operational efficiency and cost competitiveness, the Group has set up research and development ("R&D") centers in Singapore, China and Vietnam that are helmed by its dedicated team of professional engineers. Established in 1987 and headquartered in Singapore, Excelpoint's business presence spans over 40 cities in more than 10 countries with a workforce of more than 750 people from different nationalities and cultural backgrounds.

For more information on Excelpoint, please visit www.excelpoint.com

About SEEDS Capital Pte Ltd

As the investment arm of Enterprise Singapore, SEEDS Capital catalyses smart investments into innovative Singapore-based startups with strong intellectual content and global market potential. SEEDS Capital co-invests with independent investors in innovative startups. SEEDS Capital helps our startups commercialize and expand globally through leveraging on the expertise and strategic networks of our co-investment partners in areas such as technology translation, commercialisation and market expansion. Through co-investments, SEEDS Capital aims to catalyse investments into nascent and strategic sectors. These include Advanced Manufacturing & Engineering, Health & Biomedical Sciences, Urban Solutions & Sustainability, and Services & Digital Economy. 

About Enterprise Singapore 

Enterprise Singapore, formerly International Enterprise Singapore and SPRING Singapore, is the government agency championing enterprise development. Enterprise Singapore works with committed companies to build capabilities, innovate and internationalise. Enterprise Singapore also supports the growth of Singapore as a hub for global trading and startups. As the national standards and accreditation body, we continue to build trust in Singapore's products and services through quality and standards. 

For more information on Enterprise Singapore, please visit www.enterprisesg.gov.sg.

SOURCE Meridian Innovation