The NRFC has made a $25 million equity investment in Myriota that will be used to scale the company’s Australian-based manufacturing of advanced satellite communications modules and hardware for global export, as well as supercharge the expansion of its network technologies and infrastructure to support lower latency, larger data requirements.
The NRFC’s investment will help to improve industrial capability in regional areas, with Myriota’s technology being used to enhance productivity and efficiencies in sectors operating in remote areas such as agriculture, mining and defence. The investment will also create high-skilled employment opportunities, delivering up to 100 engineering jobs at the Myriota Advanced Manufacturing Base in South Australia.
About Myriota
Myriota is a South Australian-based satellite telecommunications company focussed on delivering intelligence on real world, field-based conditions through remote sensing to enable businesses to monitor and manage assets in real time in areas without traditional internet coverage. The company was founded in 2015 to commercialise research and development originally conducted at the University of South Australia.
Myriota’s cutting edge Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity allows customers to securely transfer field data from a fast-growing partner ecosystem of “ready to use” sensors and solutions via satellite to the cloud from anywhere in the world. All of this is possible without the need for any additional ground-based infrastructure, such as gateways or towers.
Myriota’s technology is used to enable a wide range of applications that have previously been unachievable with existing connectivity solutions due to cost or coverage constraints.
These include farmers monitoring fuel or water tanks on remote properties; water utilities tracking water meter status, levels and performance; wind farm operators monitoring wind turbine health to detect faults and reduce maintenance costs; and defence forces using Myriota devices for real-time asset location and enhanced situational awareness.
Myriota provides a simple, inexpensive, and robust platform to its fast-growing ecosystem of partners, who integrate and deliver high-quality, Myriota-enabled IoT solutions to the market. Myriota’s hardware is designed and developed by their highly skilled team of edge and network engineers and manufactured by partners based in Australia.
Myriota owns and operates satellites including the recently launched Kanyini satellite, designed and built in South Australia, and uniquely accesses capacity on tens of other satellites using third-party satellite operators with its pioneering Space As A Service (SPAAS) model.
Investment impact
Growing industrial capability
Myriota’s technology is growing Australia’s capability in the telecommunications and space sectors while enhancing productivity and efficiencies in partnering sectors such as agriculture, mining and defence.
The NRFC’s investment in Myriota will allow the company to further develop its advanced proprietary network stack for the unique demands of remote field-based sensing, advance and scale manufacturing of its advanced edge hardware, and expand ground, satellite and terrestrial network infrastructures in Australia and globally.
Commercialising Australian innovation
Myriota’s patented technology was originally developed at the Institute for Telecommunications Research at the University of South Australia. The NRFC’s investment provides a strong example of supporting the commercialisation and scaling of home-grown innovation.
Advancing regional development
The services that Myriota provides to remote locations across Australia have the potential to assist with the development of new projects and improve existing initiatives in the regions, particularly in the agriculture, mining and renewable energy sectors.
The NRFC’s investment will allow Myriota to further expand its coverage and develop new services for customers in regional Australia.
Creating jobs
The NRFC’s investment will enable Myriota to scale to 100 high-skilled jobs in Australia, with the majority based at its Advanced Manufacturing Base in South Australia. The jobs created will include engineers, software and hardware developers, and data networking and satellite communications professionals.
Attracting private finance
The NRFC’s investment is part of a $50 million growth funding round being undertaken by Myriota, with the remaining funding coming from additional financial institutions and other investors.
Enhancing national security
Myriota’s technology has a wide range of potential applications for the defence sector, and the company has already secured a number of work programs within the defence industry. The NRFC’s investment will help to address critical national security challenges and provide essential capabilities for the defence sector.