Wireless comms firm Whizpace secures 6m yuan for China expansion

WHIZPACE, a Singapore-based startup specialising in wireless communications, has raised six million yuan (S$1.2 million) for the expansion of its Chinese subsidiary, it announced in a Sunday press release. (see amendment note)

The subsidiary, Whizpace (Suzhou) Co, raised three million yuan from a Suzhou government grant and another three million yuan from a Chinese angel investor.

Separately, Whizpace's headquarters in Singapore is currently raising another S$2-3 million to ramp up the team and develop products to fund its pipeline. The round is expected to close in Q1 2021.

Founded in 2016, Whizpace offers a TV White Space (TVWS) "Super Wi-Fi" solution, which taps into unused TV bands for wireless communications. These bands can save time and cost of network deployments by up to 90 per cent, the company said.

The startup now sees opportunities to capture the Chinese market. "There are 3.65 million factories in China, out of which 380,000 are sizeable ones. In line with the Chinese government's Smart Manufacturing 2025 Initiative, many factories are looking for solutions to connect their factories," said Johnny Zhu, chief executive of Whizpace (Suzhou) Co.

Whizpace's founder Oh Ser Wah added: "We are happy that although our Suzhou office was just started right before Covid-19, we quickly attracted attention from customers and investors. With the new funds raised, the China subsidiary will accelerate our team and business expansion."

Whizpace is supported by the A*Star Partners' Centre (A*PC), which the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*Star) and China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP) launched on Nov 18 to help Singapore companies expand in China.

Whizpace had planned to enter China in 2017, when the China-Singapore Suzhou Industrial Park Development Group (CSSD) brought company executives to visit Suzhou and explore opportunities with the government and private sector.

"We identified that Whizpace has good technology that China may need, and there is a big potential of their Super Wi-Fi technology to capture the huge market in China," said Bernard Teo, general manager of CSSD's Singapore office.

"We are pleased that the A*PC is able to help local enterprises like Whizpace gain a foothold internationally, and look forward to further success stories," said Tan Sze Wee, assistant chief executive for enterprise at A*Star.

Amendment note: An earlier version of the story misspelled the firm's name. This has been corrected.