ICLegend.com (Haodian)

ICLegend Microelectronics (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., also known as Haodian or 矽典微, is a fabless semiconductor company established in January 2018 that specializes in high-performance radio frequency (RF) integrated circuits. The company was founded by Dr. Hongtao Xu, who serves as the CEO. Dr. Xu holds a Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and previously worked at Intel Labs for a decade before joining Fudan University as a researcher and professor in the School of Microelectronics. This academic and industry background in RF technology was pivotal in shaping the company's direction.

ICLegend focuses on the design and development of millimeter-wave (mmWave) sensor Systems-on-Chip (SoCs). The firm's business model centers on providing highly integrated, low-power, and cost-effective CMOS-based mmWave radar chips to a variety of industries. It generates revenue by selling these chips and related solutions to manufacturers of smart devices, enabling them to incorporate advanced sensing capabilities into their products. Key markets include AIoT, smart homes, automotive, smart transportation, and industrial applications.

The company's core product is a series of single-chip mmWave sensor SoCs that integrate the transceiver, analog-to-digital converter, and a digital signal processing unit with intelligent algorithms. This high level of integration in a small 4mm x 4mm package significantly reduces the cost, size, and power consumption compared to traditional radar sensors. ICLegend's chips enable features such as human presence detection, including subtle movements like breathing, gesture recognition, vital sign monitoring, and precise ranging and positioning. These sensors can penetrate non-metallic materials and are unaffected by environmental conditions like rain or fog, offering advantages over infrared and camera-based systems. Applications range from drone obstacle avoidance and traffic flow monitoring to non-contact vital sign tracking and smart home automation.

Since its inception, ICLegend has reached several key milestones. It successfully developed its first mmWave SoC in 2019 and achieved mass production in 2020. The company has secured multiple rounds of funding, including a Pre-A round in March 2020, an A round of nearly 100 million RMB in April 2021, and an A+ round in February 2022. This financial backing has supported the expansion of its R&D capabilities and market penetration efforts.

Keywords: mmWave sensor, SoC, radio frequency, fabless semiconductor, CMOS, radar on a chip, AIoT, smart sensing, gesture recognition, vital sign monitoring, human presence detection, automotive radar, smart transportation, industrial sensors, drone avoidance, smart home automation, low power sensors, Hongtao Xu, integrated circuits, RFIC