VC Funding for EDA Start-Ups: Pain or Gain? A Founder’s View

Business Session 2

Seed, Care and Harvest - Value Focused EDA

Wolfgang Nebel, CTA ChipVision Design Systems AG

Abstract

Europe holds a strong position in EDA research, in particular in System-level and mixed signal EDA. National, European and industrially funded research at universities and institutes leads to promising approaches meeting in particular the needs of the European system industry. In many cases the resulting technologies and prototype-tools are the key assets of EDA start-up companies.

We will present an example of such a start-up company founded in 2002 in Oldenburg: ChipVision Design Systems AG. In 2003 the company has successfully closed a venture capital financing round with a syndicate of two renowned venture capital firms. This funding enables to further invest in product development, management and growth.

From the founders’ perspective we will briefly summarize the genesis of the company, the stumbling blocks we had to surmount and our perspectives. The presentation will also show the founders’ experience and view on this deal.

Curriculum Vitae

Wolfgang Nebel holds a degree in EE from Hanover University, Germany, and a Dr.-Ing. degree from the CS department of Kaiserslautern University. From 1987 to 1993 he worked with Philips Semiconductors as a development engineer, project manager and manager of CAD Software Development. Since 1993 he is full professor at Oldenburg University, where he teaches Embedded HW/SW Systems. His research is focused on low power system design methodologies and tools as well as on System-level specification and synthesis. Dr. Nebel is a member of the board of the OFFIS research institute in Oldenburg. He served as Dean of the CS Department and 1st Vice-President of Oldenburg University. Dr. Nebel is Chairman, Chief Technology Advisor and co-founder of ChipVision Design Systems, Oldenburg and San Francisco, CA.

Andreas Demleitner holds a degree in Industrial Engineering from Karlsruhe University, Germany. Between 1990 and 2001 he worked for Siemens Semiconductors and Infineon Technologies in different functions in Germany, South Africa and California. Positions included responsibility for finance and operations for a business unit in the US and Investment Partner of Infineon Ventures, the Venture Capital arm of Infineon Technologies. In 2001, he joined MergeOptics, a German Fiber Optics startup as co-founder and CFO. Since September 2002, he is responsible for investments in semiconductors and related technologies at BayTech Venture Capital, a renowned Venture Capital Firm based in Munich, Germany. Andreas Demleitner is member of the supervisory board of Xignal Technologies and ChipVision Design Systems.