Quantenna raises $79 million led by RUSNANO and Sequoia Capital

FREMONT, USA & MOSCOW, RUSSIA: Quantenna Communications Inc., the leader in ultra-reliable Wi-Fi video networking for whole-home entertainment, has closed a $79 million funding round led by new lead investor RUSNANO, with participation by a second new investor Bright Capital. All existing major investors, Sequoia Capital, DAG Ventures, Grazia Equity, Sigma Partners, Southern Cross Venture Partners and Venrock Associates have also participated in the financing. RUSNANO will invest up to $40 million and Sequoia Capital Growth Fund will contribute $20 million.

Quantenna is experiencing insatiable demand for its disruptive Wi-Fi chipsets that offer the industry’s highest performance and coverage while providing wire-like reliability for wireless video content distribution around the home and other demanding applications. According to market research firm Gartner, Wi-Fi-enabled device shipments will grow from less than 1 billion units in 2010 to more than 3 billion in 2015, making Wi-Fi one of the most influential wireless technologies in the years to come.

According to Cisco’s 2011 Visual Networking Index Forecast, video alone is expected to reach about 90 percent of global traffic. Video services have become a primary revenue source for carriers worldwide, and demand continues to grow at an unprecedented pace for video content delivery from emerging over-the-top (OTT) service providers. Quantenna’s 4x4 MIMO chipsets represent the only commercially available solution for ultra-high reliability, carrier-grade video distribution in both managed and OTT architectures.

RUSNANO’s investment will leverage synergies between Quantenna’s portfolio and a number of nanotechnology initiatives that are underway at RUSNANO, whose mission is to develop the Russian nanotechnology industry through a variety of co-investment opportunities. Quantenna designs its products utilizing the latest semiconductor process technology, and is pursuing 40- and 28-nanometer process for its next-generation products.

RUSNANO MD, George Kolpachev, will become a member of Quantenna’s board of directors, and RUSNANO investment manager Vladislav Tropko will become a board observer. Quantenna will open a Russian subsidiary.