Grandis (company)
| Private | |
| Industry | Spin Transfer Torque Random Access Memory (STT MRAM) |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Headquarters | Milpitas, California |
Key people | Dr. Paul Nguyen (Founder) , Bill Almon (Co-Founder) , Farhad Tabrizi (CEO) |
| Products | General purpose and specialty thin film memory and technology |
Number of employees | ~30 |
| Website |
Grandis, Inc., founded in 2002, was a venture-capital-backed thin film coating company aiming to develop non-volatile thin film memory solutions derived from research in spintronics. It provides Spin Transfer Torque - Random Access Memory (STT-RAM), a new technology that revolutionizes the performance of products in areas ranging from computers and consumer electronics to automotive, medical, military, and space.
History
Grandis, Inc. was founded in Milpitas, CA in 2002 by Dr. Paul Nguyen and Bill Almon, who are thin film coating experts. Farhad Tabrizi, a seasoned executive from Lexar Media/Micron Technology, later joined as CEO. Grandis invented the first spin-transfer torque thin film structures based on magnetic tunnel junctions and quickly became the leader in the STT-RAM space. In 2011, Grandis was acquired by Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd and merged into Samsung's memory operations. [1]
Products and technologies
Grandis supplies thin film memory devices. The company is also a licensor of magnetoresistive random-access memory (MRAM) process and design technology to fabless semiconductor companies, wafer foundries, and integrated device manufacturers. Target applications include storage, telecommunications, mobile devices, and computer networking.
Grandis pioneered and developed the first STT-RAM thin film structures. Its technology addressed the problems of write selectivity and speed, low read signal, and thermal stability that other products in the Magnetic Random Access Memory (MRAM) industry suffered from.
Patents
The company owns over 200 patents which it licensed to major memory corporations including Samsung, Sony, Renesas, and Hynix.
Investors
Grandis's venture capital investors included Matrix Partners, Sevin Rosen Partners, and Applied Materials Ventures. The acquisition by Samsung resulted in a very successful exit for Grandis's investors.[2]
References
- ↑ "Samsung Buys Grandis As MRAM Moves Toward Mainstream". Fox Business. 2011-08-01. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
- ↑ "The Daily Start-Up: Samsung Makes MRAM Push With Grandis Buy". WSJ. 2011-08-02. Retrieved 2011-08-02.