Morse Micro has closed a substantial $59 million Series C funding round, bringing its total capital raised to over $193 million. The Sydney-based company, which specializes in Wi-Fi HaLow silicon solutions, attracted backing from Japanese semiconductor giant MegaChips, who led the investment.
The funding round saw strong participation from Australia's National Reconstruction Fund Corporation (NRFC), along with existing investors Blackbird, Main Sequence, and Uniseed. Notable individual backers include Ray Stata and former Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and his wife Lucy. Startmate and several institutional investors, including Hostplus, NGS, and UniSuper, also joined the round.
The Internet of Things market continues expanding rapidly, but traditional connectivity solutions struggle with range and power efficiency limitations. Morse Micro's Wi-Fi HaLow technology offers a compelling alternative, delivering ten times the range of conventional Wi-Fi while covering 100 times the area.
This technology enables what the company calls "IoT 2.0" – a new phase focused on high-throughput, long-range connectivity that can scale effectively across massive device networks. The approach addresses critical pain points in smart homes, industrial automation, and smart city applications.
The fresh funding will primarily support Morse Micro's international market expansion and production scaling efforts. The company plans to increase manufacturing capacity for its Wi-Fi HaLow chips while building stronger ecosystem partnerships worldwide.
Morse Micro is also using the investment to accelerate product development initiatives. This week, the company announced HaLowLink 2, its next-generation global evaluation platform, alongside continued development of second-generation System-on-Chip solutions.
Founded in Sydney, Morse Micro has grown into what it claims is Australia's largest semiconductor manufacturer. The company operates globally with offices across the United States, Taiwan, China, India, Japan, and the United Kingdom, employing over 130 people in Australia alone.
The company's flagship products, the MM6108 and newly launched MM8108 silicon chips, promise the fastest, smallest, and most power-efficient Wi-Fi HaLow connectivity currently available. These achievements build on Australia's strong Wi-Fi heritage – CSIRO scientists invented and patented Wi-Fi technology in 1993.
CEO and co-founder Michael De Nil sees the funding as validation of the company's ambitious goals. "This funding is another strong vote of confidence in our mission to be the number one wireless IoT chip company in the world," he said. "The future of IoT depends on connectivity that is long-range, power-efficient, secure and delivers on throughput, and that's exactly where we're leading."
MegaChips' leadership of the funding round reflects a deeper strategic partnership. The Japanese company has worked with Morse Micro for several years to increase production and sales of Wi-Fi HaLow products.
"We are proud to continue our support for Morse Micro as it leads the global transition to IoT 2.0," said Tetsuo Hikawa, President and CEO of MegaChips Group. "Morse Micro is uniquely positioned to accelerate the adoption of next generation IoT solutions. We are confident this investment positions the team and technology for international leadership and future success on the public markets."
The National Reconstruction Fund Corporation's participation highlights the strategic importance of semiconductor manufacturing for Australia's economy. "Morse Micro is Australia's largest semiconductor manufacturer and a home-grown Australian success story," said NRFC CEO David Gall. "Our investment will diversify the Australian economy, strengthen the nation's sovereign manufacturing capability, and build local expertise in semiconductor design and innovation."
