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Tempow announces Series A to enable Bluetooth as a platform for chipmakers and device manufacturers

We're delighted to share the news that Tempow today announced their $4 million Series A round led by Balderton, joined by C4 Ventures. Lars Fjeldsoe-Nielsen is joining the Tempow board.

“In my 20 years of working on mobile growth and partnerships with OEMs with embedded software – resulting in the shipping of more than a billion handsets – I’ve rarely come across, and it is exciting to find, such a small team with the ability to execute with such focus and dynamism,” said Lars. “The talent behind Tempow, combined with the scale of the opportunity, reminds me of the early days from my time at Dropbox.” 

Paris- and San Francisco-based Tempow was co-founded in 2016 by Julien Goupy, Vincent Nallatamby, Thomas Girardier and a team of alumnis from Ecole Polytechnique, one of Europe’s leading engineering schools, and 42, the new coding school created by the Xavier Niel in Paris.

In my 20 years of working on mobile growth and partnerships with OEMs with embedded software, I’ve rarely come across such a small team with the ability to execute with such focus and dynamism.

Lars Fjeldsoe-Nielsen

Tempow co-founder and CEO Vincent Nallatamby talks to Jack Rivlin, founder and CEO of Tab Media and Jens Begemann, founder and CEO of Wooga at the 2018 Balderton CEO Collective in France, May 2018

The company creates software-only solutions that are built to enhance the four billion Bluetooth-enabled devices sold annually. Amid predictions that there will be a trillion connected devices globally by 2035, there’s a vast opportunity for Bluetooth to play a pivotal role as the glue between such devices and as the ‘armour’ to protect against security vulnerabilities.

Working directly with hardware and chipset manufacturers, Tempow has enabled a brand-new Bluetooth stack that can enhance everything from seamless accessory connectivity, to extended battery life, to protocol security for everything from TVs, to smart home assistants, to headphones and speakers.

Today, from a user experience standpoint, Bluetooth is ‘broken’ – with overly complex technology resulting in inconsistency and friction. We will push the limits of Bluetooth far beyond its current deployment and define higher standards for every new piece of Bluetooth-enabled hardware.

Vincent Nallatamby

“Today, from a user experience standpoint, Bluetooth is ‘broken’ – with overly complex technology resulting in inconsistency and friction. Many take Bluetooth for granted or underestimate what can be done with it, but we have barely scratched the surface of the technology’s potential,” said Vincent Nallatamby, CEO and co-founder of Tempow. “We will push the limits of Bluetooth far beyond its current deployment and define higher standards for every new piece of Bluetooth-enabled hardware.”

The company’s first commercial product, the Tempow Audio Profile (TAP), was selected by Lenovo-owned Motorola to bring unique Bluetooth audio sharing features to the flagship Moto X4 handset. As a result, millions of handsets featuring the TAP software stack are currently in the market globally.

Tempow plans to use this new round of funding to close new distribution deals with hardware manufacturers and double the size of their global team.

Read Vincent's own perspective on the experience of closing Series A with Balderton.

Read the story in Techcrunch,  Les EchosFrenchWeb.FR, and on Venturebeat.

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