Nangate Inc., a leading provider of electronic design automation (EDA) software that offers unprecedented improvements in power consumption, performance, and cost of integrated circuits (ICs), has announced that it has raised USD 10 million in Series A financing from a consortium of investors, including Vaekstfonden, IVS, and SEED Capital.

The investment will allow Nangate to continue product development and expand its worldwide sales and support organizations. The company was incorporated in October 2004 by a team of serial entrepreneurs with impressive prior international business successes, including that of IC startup Exbit Technology, which was acquired in 2001 for USD 164 million by Vitesse Semiconductor Corp.

Having recognized a need for IC design solutions that can help unleash the true potential of silicon process technologies, Nangate has assembled an exceptional team of veteran IC designers, library developers, and seasoned EDA professionals who are all fluent in semiconductor development across a wide range of design disciplines.

The company employs more than 40 people worldwide, with engineering operations in Copenhagen, Denmark and Moscow, Russia. In addition, the company has established an advanced research division in Porto Alegre, Brazil, and sales and support offices in Silicon Valley, USA.

“This financing round represents an important milestone for us, and I am very pleased that we have managed to raise the capital for our internationally oriented and ambitious business plan with a local consortium,” said Ole Christian Andersen, CEO of Nangate.

“Availability of early-stage venture capital has traditionally been limited in Denmark and many companies have been forced to seek funding elsewhere. In recent years however, this has improved significantly,” Ole Andersen continues.

“Efficient board-level operation is paramount and the constellation of investors represents an excellent fit at our current development stage.” Soren Christensen, Venture Partner at Vaekstfonden’s Silicon Valley office, noted, “I have had the privilege to experience first-hand the positive reception that Nangate is receiving from its US-based customers.

Nangate has a very strong value proposition that addresses some very fundamental and important issues in the semiconductor industry - and their international business orientation is exactly what we are looking for when we invest in a new company.”

Thomas Weilby Knudsen, Partner and CEO at IVS adds, “We are especially impressed with the strengths of the Nangate management team and their ability to methodically execute their visionary plans. It is encouraging to experience that early customer interaction is an integral part of their go-to-market model.”

Peter Tottrup, Partner at SEED Capital comments, “Having followed Nangate from inception, we are extremely impressed with what the team has accomplished to date. We have collaborated closely with Nangate management to complete this funding round, and we are excited to be part of the consortium going forward.”

About Nangate: Nangate develops and markets Electronic Design Automation tools and intellectual property that allow customers to take full advantage of current and next-generation IC technologies. The Nangate tool suite constitutes a revolutionary new class of EDA solutions that increases the efficiency of digital CMOS ICs to levels previously only achievable with extensive manual efforts and very large design teams.

Targeting the inherent shortcomings of predefined ‘one-size-fits-all’ standard cell libraries, Nangate provides a range of library optimization tools and solutions that can effectively optimize power consumption and maximize performance while minimizing chip area. By utilizing Nangate software, customers benefit in multiple areas including lower power consumption, reduced manufacturing costs, higher performance, and shorter time to market.