Semtech and Helium Announce New Nationwide LoRaWAN Network

Helium’s new LoRaWAN® compatible network could reach hundreds of millions of LoRa®-based devices with 4,300 gateways nationwide

CAMARILLO, Calif., Mar. 5, 2020 – Semtech Corporation (Nasdaq: SMTC), a leading supplier of high performance analog and mixed-signal semiconductors and advanced algorithms, is collaborating with Helium, the company behind one the world’s first peer-to-peer wireless networks, in its efforts to develop one of the largest LoRa-based networks in North America. The Helium network is now fully compatible with the LoRaWAN® protocol and available to the LoRa community of more than 8,000 active software developers.

“We are thrilled to work with Semtech and integrate the LoRaWAN protocol into our LongFi architecture to extend the reach of the Helium network,” said Amir Haleem, Helium’s CEO and co-founder. “The combination of our technologies and platforms provides the LoRa developer community with new opportunities to create new IoT solutions for both businesses and consumers.”

The Helium Hotspot is a new hardware device that enables anyone to own and operate a wireless network for IoT. With Helium’s own open-sourced blockchain technology, individuals are incentivized to deploy Helium Hotspots, which simultaneously mine cryptocurrency and provide LoRaWAN network coverage for hundreds of square miles.

Helium’s network, introduced in Q4 2019, is available in over 745 U.S. cities with major markets throughout the nation, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, Miami, and Austin.

“With Helium’s commitment to using Semtech’s LoRa devices and the LoRaWAN protocol, the massive deployment of a LoRaWAN-based network in the U.S. is becoming a reality,” said Marc Pegulu, Vice President of Internet of Things (IoT) for Semtech’s Wireless and Sensing Products Group. “Helium’s model is highly innovative and not only incentivizes consumers to own and operate a piece of the network, but also reinforces a commitment to open-source architecture using the LoRaWAN protocol designed to change the game for LoRa developers.”

Combining Semtech’s LoRa devices with Helium’s distributed, open-source approach to building a ubiquitous network allows any manufacturer, developer or application to utilize LoRaWAN compatible technology to connect devices across the nation. There are over 4,300 Helium Hotspots sold to date since nationwide shipping started in October 2019 and that number is growing.

To learn more about LoRa, visit Semtech’s website.

About Semtech’s LoRa® Devices

Semtech’s LoRa devices are widely adopted long-range, low-power solutions for IoT that gives telecom companies, IoT application makers and system integrators the feature set necessary to deploy low-cost, interoperable IoT networks, gateways, sensors, module products, and IoT services worldwide. IoT networks based on the LoRaWAN® specification have been deployed in 100 countries and Semtech is a founding member of the LoRa Alliance®, the fastest growing IoT alliance for low power wide area network applications. To learn more about how LoRa enables IoT, visit Semtech’s LoRa site.

About Helium

Co-founded by Shawn Fanning and Amir Haleem in 2013, Helium is building the world’s first peer-to-peer wireless network to simplify connecting devices to the internet by rewarding anyone to become a network operator. CEO Amir Haleem comes from an extensive background in triple-A video games. Helium is backed by GV (formerly Google Ventures), Khosla Ventures, Union Square Ventures, Multicoin Capital, FirstMark, Marc Benioff, Shawn Fanning and other top VCs. The network is live in more than 745 cities throughout the nation and counting. More information can be found at helium.com.

About Semtech

Semtech Corporation is a leading supplier of high-performance analog and mixed-signal semiconductors and advanced algorithms for high-end consumer, enterprise computing, communications, and industrial equipment. Products are designed to benefit the engineering community as well as the global community. The Company is dedicated to reducing the impact it, and its products, have on the environment. Internal green programs seek to reduce waste through material and manufacturing control, use of green technology and designing for resource reduction. Publicly traded since 1967, Semtech is listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol SMTC. For more information, visit www.semtech.com.  

Forward-Looking and Cautionary Statements

All statements contained herein that are not statements of historical fact, including statements that use the words “could,” “to develop,” “opportunities to,” “incentivized to,” “is becoming,” “designed to” or other similar words or expressions, that describe Semtech Corporation’s or its management’s future plans, objectives or goals are “forward-looking statements” and are made pursuant to the Safe-Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual results of Semtech Corporation to be materially different from the historical results and/or from any future results or outcomes expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors are further addressed in Semtech Corporation’s annual and quarterly reports, and in other documents or reports, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (www.sec.gov) including, without limitation, information under the captions “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Risk Factors.” Semtech Corporation assumes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements in order to reflect events or circumstances that may arise after the date of this release, except as required by law.

Semtech, the Semtech logo and LoRa are registered trademarks or service marks of Semtech Corporation or its affiliates.

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