TIDMALM
RNS Number : 9775G
Allied Minds PLC
12 November 2018
Spin Memory (formerly Spin Transfer Technologies) announces
Series B fundraise and signs commercial agreements with Arm and
Applied Materials
$52 million Series B round
Commercial agreement with Applied Materials to create a
comprehensive embedded MRAM solution
Licensing agreement with Arm covering Spin Memory's Endurance
Engine(TM)
Spin Transfer Technologies to re-brand as Spin Memory
Boston, MA (12 November 2018) - Allied Minds portfolio company,
Spin Memory, Inc., (Spin Memory) the leading MRAM developer
formerly known as Spin Transfer Technologies, Inc., today announced
its $52 million Series B funding round, and entry into a commercial
agreement with Arm for the licensing of Spin Memory's Endurance
Engine design IP to address static random-access memory (SRAM)
applications, and a commercial agreement with Applied Materials,
Inc. (Applied) to create a comprehensive embedded MRAM
solution.
Fund-raise and summary
This funding round was led by Applied Ventures LLC, the venture
capital arm of Applied Materials, Inc. (Applied), and Arm. The
round is comprised of $29.0 million raised or otherwise committed
from these new investors, as well as existing investors, and $23.0
million from the exercise of convertible securities subscribed for
in an earlier bridge round by Allied Minds, Woodford Investment
Management and Invesco Asset Management.
Along with the funding, Spin Memory announced a commercial
agreement with Applied to create a comprehensive embedded MRAM
solution - and a commercial agreement with Arm for the licensing of
Spin Memory's Endurance Engine design IP to address static
random-access memory (SRAM) application in SoCs.
The funding and commercial agreements represent a new model of
collaboration that Spin Memory is driving to establish MRAM as a
mainstream alternative to embedded SRAM and a range of other
non-volatile memories.
"These new agreements with Applied and Arm provide Spin Memory
the opportunity for strong ecosystem collaboration," said John
Kispert, chairman of the board of directors at Spin Memory. "Spin
Memory is driving a unique industry approach to bringing
breakthrough memory technology IPs into the mainstream. We are
proud to be engaging with industry leaders in our mission to enable
new and exciting embedded memory applications."
Spin Memory - Arm licensing agreement
Spin Memory has signed a licensing agreement with Arm, the
world's leading semiconductor IP company. The licensing agreement
extends to Spin Memory's Endurance Engine(TM) technology and
related IP, and governs the terms on which Arm and Spin Memory will
work together to create SRAM-class magnetoresistive random-access
memory (MRAM) design solutions based on this proprietary
technology.
Under the licensing agreement, Spin Memory will provide Arm its
innovative Endurance Engine design architecture to develop a new
line of embedded MRAM design IP. This MRAM design IP will address
static random-access memory (SRAM) application in SoCs, with denser
and lower power solutions than typically achieved with the current
6T SRAM cell-based IP.
"Technologies like AI, 5G, ADAS and IoT demand more power and
area-efficient embedded memory than the existing SRAM and eFlash
solutions. These requirements are leading the industry to rethink
the way chips are developed - including their memory IP content,"
said Gus Yeung, VP, GM, and Fellow, Physical Design Group, Arm.
"Arm's work with Spin Memory aims to address a key design challenge
and enable broader adoption of MRAM design in SoCs."
"With the challenges currently facing SRAM, we have long seen
demand for a new memory that could replace SRAM and suitably
support the needs of technologies like AI or IoT," said Tom
Sparkman, CEO of Spin Memory. "Through our collaboration with Arm,
our objective is to combine our Endurance Engine with Arm's IP to
provide an MRAM design solution that satisfies the growing need for
a denser, lower power SRAM replacement."
Spin Memory - Applied commercial agreement
Under the commercial agreement with Applied, the parties will
create a comprehensive embedded MRAM solution. The solution brings
together Applied's industry-leading deposition and etch
capabilities with Spin Memory's MRAM process IP.
Key elements of the offering include Applied innovations in PVD
and etch process technology, Spin Memory's revolutionary
Precessional Spin Current(TM) (PSC ) structure (also known as the
Spin Polarizer), and industry leading perpendicular magnetic tunnel
junction (pMTJ) technology from both companies. The solution is
designed to allow customers to quickly bring up an embedded MRAM
manufacturing module and start producing world-class MRAM-enabled
products for both non-volatile (flash-like) and SRAM-replacement
applications. Spin Memory intends to make the solution commercially
available from 2019.
"In the AI and IoT era, the industry needs high-speed,
area-efficient non-volatile memory like never before," said Tom
Sparkman, CEO at Spin Memory. "Through our collaboration with
Applied Materials, we will bring the next generation of STT-MRAM to
market and address this growing need for alternative memory
solutions."
"Our industry is driving a new wave of computing that will
result in billions of sensors and a dramatic increase in data
generation," said Steve Ghanayem, senior vice president of New
Markets and Alliances at Applied Materials. "As a result, we are
seeing a renaissance in hardware innovation, from materials to
systems, and we are excited to be teaming up with Spin Memory to
help accelerate the availability of a new memory."
Re-branding as Spin Memory
Previously known as Spin Transfer Technologies, the company has
rebranded itself as Spin Memory to differentiate itself from its
former business goals and objectives. "Our company has completely
transformed over recent years - moving from delivering
industry-changing technologies to offering a full suite of MRAM
solutions," said Tom Sparkman, CEO at Spin Memory. "The rebranding
reflects this shift in intent, as we transform the industry with a
new MRAM IP ecosystem, overcoming the limitations of today's
embedded memories."
Implications of the fundraise for Allied Minds
The balance of the raise not subscribed by Arm and Applied is
expected to be provided by additional new strategic and financial
investors in a second closing to be concluded in due course. Allied
Minds is backstopping this component of the raise in the
interim.
The fundraise was completed at a pre-money valuation that is the
same as the valuation included in Allied Minds' OAV stated at our
H1 2018 results. Following the completion of the second closing of
the transaction, Allied Minds' ownership of Spin Memory's issued
share capital is expected to be 40.88%.
S
For more information, please contact:
Allied Minds plc +44 7771 872 922
Neil Pizey, Head of Corporate IR@alliedminds.com
Development
FTI Consulting
Ben Atwell / Brett Pollard +44 20 3727 1000
About Allied Minds
Allied Minds plc is an IP commercialisation company focused on
early stage company creation and development within the technology
and life science sectors. With origination relationships spanning
US federal laboratories, universities, and leading US corporations,
Allied Minds sources, operates and funds a portfolio of companies
to generate long-term value for its investors and stakeholders.
Based in Boston, Allied Minds supports its businesses with capital,
management, expertise and shared services. For more information,
please visit www.alliedminds.com
About Spin Memory
Spin Memory, Inc. (formerly Spin Transfer Technologies, Inc.) is
the pre-eminent MRAM IP supplier. Through collaboration with
industry leaders, Spin Memory is transforming the semiconductor
industry by solving memory challenges vital for AI, ADAS, 5G, IoT
and more. Spin Memory's disruptive STT-MRAM technologies and
products provide SRAM-like speed and endurance that can replace
SRAM and ultimately DRAM in both embedded and stand-alone
applications. For more information, please visit
www.spinmemory.com.
About the Endurance Engine
Spin Memory's Endurance Engine technology is a breakthrough
advancement that solves the previous endurance deficiencies of all
other MRAM design solutions, bringing MRAM array performance up to
SRAM performance levels. The Endurance Engine is a combination of
circuits and design architectures that provide up to six orders of
magnitude improvement in endurance while enabling SRAM-like Read
and Write speeds by utilizing pMTJ's stochastic behavior (pMTJ or
perpendicular magnetic tunnel junction is the core magnetics
technology of MRAM). For example, if a standard MRAM solution
offers 10^8 cycles of endurance - typical of today's commercial
offerings - then adding the Endurance Engine technologies will
increase the endurance to beyond 10^14 cycles - sufficient for
nearly all SRAM and DRAM (dynamic random-access memory)
applications. And since the Endurance Engine is wholly implemented
using digital circuitry, it can be fabricated in any logic or
memory digital process and is designed to work with any pMTJ.
About the Spin Polarizer (also known as PSC)
The PSC structure increases the spin-torque efficiency of any
MRAM device by 40-70 percent - enabling any MRAM to achieve
dramatically higher data retention while consuming less power.
Applications set to see significant benefits of MRAM with the PSC
structure include: datacenters, IoT and autonomous driving. Because
it requires no additional materials or tools than those already
used in the production of STT-MRAM - the PSC structure adds
virtually no complexity or cost for customers and can be seamlessly
incorporated into any MRAM manufacturer's existing process.
Allied Minds Forward-Looking Statement
This press release contains statements that are or may be
forward-looking statements, including statements that relate to
Allied Minds' future prospects, developments and strategies. The
forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and
are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could
cause actual results, performance and achievements to differ
materially from current expectations, including, but not limited
to, those risks and uncertainties described in the risk factors
included in Allied Minds' regulatory filings. These forward-looking
statements are based on assumptions regarding the present and
future business strategies of Allied Minds and the environment in
which it will operate in the future. Each forward-looking statement
speaks only as at the date of this press release. Except as
required by law, regulatory requirement, the Listing Rules and the
Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules, neither Allied Minds
nor any other party intends to update or revise these
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise.
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END
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