Totum

Totum Labs, a satellite IoT connectivity company, was acquired by Ceva, Inc. in October 2022 and now operates as its wholly-owned subsidiary. Founded in 2018 by Ted Myers in San Diego, California, Totum developed a revolutionary direct-to-satellite, low-power, wide-area (LPWA) connectivity solution. This technology, named Doppler Multichannel Spread Spectrum (DMSS), enables tracking and monitoring of assets, even indoors, by connecting low-power sensors directly to its constellation of Low Earth Orbit (LEO) nanosatellites.

The core of Totum's offering is its System on a Chip (SoC), which integrates a DMSS modem and RF functionality, allowing for small, low-cost endpoint devices with a battery life of over ten years. This capability is designed to compete with cellular LPWA technologies like NB-IoT by providing global coverage without the need for additional terrestrial infrastructure. The company's business model focused on providing this connectivity for high-volume applications in markets such as supply chain, logistics, agriculture, and industrial sectors. Before its acquisition, Totum had secured $15.5 million in funding, including a $13 million Series A round in November 2020 co-led by Heroic Ventures and Space Capital, with participation from investors like Qualcomm co-founder Dr. Andrew Viterbi. In September 2021, the company successfully demonstrated the world's first indoor, direct-to-satellite IoT connection and had booked two million in advance orders for its solution.

Keywords: satellite IoT, asset tracking, LPWA connectivity, DMSS technology, Low Earth Orbit, LEO, direct-to-satellite, System on a Chip, SoC, global connectivity, indoor tracking, supply chain monitoring, logistics technology, Ted Myers, Ceva Inc.