ARM Holdings*
Public company based in Cambridge, England • CEO: Warren East
• What it does: Licenses its risc microprocessors and system-on-a-chip designs for consumer goods as well as encryption and industrial applications.
• Why it's hot: ARM controls an estimated 80% of the global market for the chips in mobile handsets and now wants to move beyond mobile phones into consumer and networking products.
www.arm.com
Cambridge Silicon Radio*
Private company based in Cambridge, England • CEO: John Hodgson
• What it does: Makes single-chip radio devices for wireless communications, including Bluetooth, which allows for connections within a 10-m radius.
• Why it's hot: Demand is expected to skyrocket as manufacturers integrate Bluetooth chips into everything from laptops to cars. In May, csr announced that Microsoft will use its single-chip Bluetooth technology in its next-generation wireless mouse and keyboard.
www.csr.com
Infineon Technologies*
Public company based in Munich, Germany
• CEO: Ulrich Schumacher
• What it does: Makes D-Ram memory products and semiconductors for a variety of sectors, including smart cards.
• Why it's hot: Security concerns following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the U.S. have increased demand for smart cards.
www.infineon.com
Parthus Technologies*
Public company based in Dublin, Ireland • CEO: Brian Long
• What it does: Licenses platform technology for the mobile Internet, including the 802.11 family of specifications for high-speed wireless networks, global satellite positioning and multimedia.
• Why it's hot: Technology consultancy the Gartner Group says a proposed merger with the intellectual property licensing business of Israel's dsp Group should catapult Parthus from No. 8 to No. 4 worldwide in this sector.
www.parthus.com
Radioscape Private company based in London, England
• Managing Director:
Peter Florence
• What it does: Provides licensable software and development tools that manage semiconductor hardware, including digital signal processors (DSPS), which form the heart of every wireless communications device.
AIDAN CRAWLEY/PHOTOCALL IRELAND
Brian Long
• Why it's hot: DSPS are notoriously difficult to program. Radioscape's Communication Virtual Machine technology makes it easier for developers to combine different communications software on a single device. Last month Radioscape raised another $2.8 million in funding, which will go to expanding into Asia.
www.radioscape.com
Siroyan Private company based in Reading, England • CEO: Kenneth Will
• What it does: Licenses high-performance digital-signal processing technology for wireless devices and set-top boxes.
• Why it's hot: Given that third-generation mobile handsets are going to need tremendous signal-processing capabilities, new high-speed architectures and Internet Protocol delivery models, such as Siroyan's OneDSP technology, are expected to be in high demand.
www.siroyan.com STMicroelectronics*
Public company based in Geneva, Switzerland
• CEO: Pasquale Pistorio
• What it does: Makes custom semiconductors for the computer, telecom, consumer electronics and automotive industries.
• Why it's hot: The $6.35 billion company is now the third-largest in the semiconductor industry, and could overtake Toshiba for the No. 2 spot this year, just behind Intel.
www.st.com
Systemonic*
Private company based in Dresden, Germany • CEO: Ruediger Stroh
• What it does: Produces custom-made digital signal processors for multiprotocol communication devices.
• Why it's hot: Its products can handle both the gprs and 802.11 high-speed wireless standards.
www.systemonic.com
Tak'Asic Private company based in Guyancourt, France
• CEO: Jean-Paul Vernière
• What it does: Makes still-image processing-chip sets used in digital office equipment such as printers, scanners and faxes. Its next generation of products will be used in digital cameras.
• Why it's hot: High-speed image processing and compression are becoming key components of a wide range of electronic devices.
www.takasic.com
TTPCom Public company based in Cambridge, England
• Managing Director:
Tony Milbourn
• What it does: Designs all the technology inside mobile devices, including gsm third-generation (3G) phones.
• Why it's hot: Analysts say TTPCom is one of the few intellectual property-rights companies that can offer the complete design of a mobile phone. Its target market includes Enhanced Data GSM Environment (edge) and Universal Mobile Telecommunications Standard (UMTS), wireless gaming and Bluetooth.
www.ttpcom.com
OPTICS
These companies are designing the transmission systems of
the future.
Intense Photonics Private company based in Glasgow, Scotland • CEO: David Lockwood
• What it does: Produces
photonic integrated circuits.
• Why it's hot: Its technology squeezes more functions into the chips used in optical networks, helping cut costs.
www.intensephotonics.com
Kamelian*
Private company based in Glasgow, Scotland • CEO: Paul May
• What it does: Makes semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOAS).
• Why it's hot: soas should help pave the way for the cost-efficient all-optical networks of the future.
www.kamelian.com
Teem Photonics*
Private company based in Meylan, France • CEO: Antoine Kevorkian
• What it does: Produces highly compact fiber-network components, such as Erbium-doped waveguide amplifiers.
• Why it's hot: One of the first companies to recognize that amplifier arrays can generate enormous cost savings on networking costs within cities.
www.teemphotonics.com
ThreeFive Photonics Private company based in Houten, the Netherlands • CEO: Wouter Deelman
• What it does: Makes chips that integrate multiple optical functions on a single piece of indium phosphide.
• Why it's hot: The integration of active and passive components is key to cutting the scale and the cost of optical networks.
www.threefivephotonics.com
WIRELESS
These companies are focusing on technologies that will help us connect in more innovative ways.
Anoto Group Public company based in Lund, Sweden • CEO: Christer Fåhraeus
• What it does: Converts handwriting into digital information, allowing anything inscribed with a digital pen on digital paper to be sent directly to any mobile phone or computer worldwide.
• Why it's hot: Anoto is creating a de facto global standard for paper-based digital communications. It recently signed a deal with Logitech and 3M's post-it notes division and also has strategic alliances with Ericsson, Microsoft and Hitachi.
www.anotogroup.com
Digital Bridges Private company based in Edinburgh, Scotland • CEO: Brian Greasley
• What it does: Produces interactive, multi-user wireless entertainment and also covers delivery, distribution, publishing and content design.
• Why it's hot: It is building the technology and developing partnerships to help kick start the global wireless entertainment industry.
www.digitalbrid.com
Europe's Hottest Tech Companies: TIME picks those with the greatest future potential, not present hype. When Investors Go Dutch: The European Tech Tour hits the Netherlands, home to ambitious firms like Tridion Europe's Biotech Finds the Formula: Take increased investment, new laws and a changing culture, and you get a Continent able to compete with the U.S. Remote Control: Wi-Fi may promise a future of home wireless networks, but does it work?
