Samplify Systems

Samplify Systems, Inc. operated as a fabless semiconductor company, specializing in mixed-signal compression solutions to address I/O, storage, and memory bandwidth bottlenecks. The company was founded in 2006 by Al Wegener, a serial entrepreneur with extensive experience in real-time embedded software design and digital signal processing. Wegener, who served as CTO, developed the company's core compression algorithms and initially worked on the concept for seven years part-time before securing funding. Tom Sparkman later joined as CEO to help raise capital, and in 2012, Allan Evans, who had been with the company since its inception, was appointed CEO to steer its focus towards big data, consumer electronics, and mobile devices.

Initially structured as an intellectual property (IP) provider, Samplify Systems transitioned into a fabless semiconductor company in October 2008. This shift allowed the company to integrate its Prism™ signal compression technology directly into data converters, creating a new class of 'intelligent data converters'. The business targeted the multi-billion dollar data conversion and Application-Specific Standard Product (ASSP) markets, serving clients in medical imaging, wireless infrastructure, high-performance computing, and industrial sectors. Revenue was generated through the sale of these semiconductor products, IP licensing, and system solutions. The company raised a total of $27.8M in funding over several rounds from investors including Charles River Ventures, Formative Ventures, Schlumberger, and Integrated Device Technology (IDT).

Samplify's product portfolio was centered around its real-time data compression technology. A key product line was the SAM1600 family of compressing analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), which integrated high-performance analog with sophisticated digital processing. For the ultrasound market, the company developed AutoFocus™ beamforming technology and offered the SAM1600 as a 16-channel ADC, which was considered the highest density and lowest power device for ultrasound analog front-ends at the time. In the wireless sector, its Prism IQ™ compression technology was designed for 4G base stations using CPRI and OBSAI protocols. The company's innovations were recognized with multiple industry awards, and its intellectual property portfolio included numerous patents in the US and China, which were later acquired by Altera (now part of Intel). The company ceased operations in 2014 after running out of cash.

Keywords: fabless semiconductor, mixed-signal compression, data converters, intellectual property licensing, Al Wegener, signal processing, analog-to-digital converters, medical imaging technology, wireless infrastructure solutions, high-performance computing components, Prism compression, SAM1600 ADC, AutoFocus beamforming, data bottleneck solutions, embedded systems, compression algorithms, real-time compression, I/O bandwidth, storage bottlenecks, memory bandwidth, ASSP market, Charles River Ventures, Formative Ventures, Integrated Device Technology, ultrasound front-ends, 4G wireless base stations, CPRI compression, OBSAI protocols, semiconductor design, electronics manufacturing, system-on-chip, data conversion market