Cambridge, ON – November 23, 2015– exactEarth Ltd., the leading provider of Satellite AIS data services, announced today that it is investing AUD $2M to secure a minority ownership position in technology company, Myriota Pty Ltd of Adelaide, Australia.
The business focus of Myriota is to utilise advanced signal processing Intellectual Property developed at the University of South Australia (UniSA) in order to develop advanced terminals, infrastructure and applications for the fast growing Satellite Internet of Things (SIoT) global market. This core IP has been developed to create a disruptively low-cost solution for this marketplace which will have the capability of supporting many millions of global users. Myriota is particularly focused on the location tracking and sensor data applications markets.
In addition to exactEarth the other shareholders of Myriota are UniSA Ventures and founders Dr. Alex Grant and Dr. David Haley, who while at UniSA led the team who developed this ground-breaking technology. Myriota intends to use exactEarth’s global satellite infrastructure for its space segment and aims to demonstrate initial applications within the next year.
As part of the Myriota investment, exactEarth is also receiving an exclusive license to utilise this IP in the maritime market and in addition, exactEarth has the option to make further investments in Myriota in the future to increase its shareholding.
“exactEarth has already demonstrated that microsatellite constellations can be used to develop a successful high growth advanced global data services business,” said Peter Mabson, exactEarth President. “Our investment in Myriota is well aligned with our strategy to enter the Satellite Internet of Things Market. Between exactEarth’s global satellite technology infrastructure and Myriota’s advanced IoT technology, we will be well positioned to take this new capability to the next level.”
“We expect Myriota’s Satellite Internet of Things solution to enable a wide range of new applications,” said Dr Alex Grant Myriota CEO. “We are working on advanced applications in the areas of agriculture, environmental sensing, oil and gas, mining and defence – and we expect that this is just the beginning.”
“UniSA has a global reputation for its expertise in the development and commercialisation of advanced signal processing for communications technology solutions,” said Dr Stephen Rodda, CEO of UniSA Ventures, “and we are very pleased to see the birth of Myriota today to carry on this proud history.”
About exactEarth
exactEarth is a leading provider of global maritime vessel data for ship tracking and maritime situational awareness solutions. Since its establishment in 2009, exactEarth has pioneered a powerful new method of maritime surveillance called Satellite-AIS (“S-AIS”) and has delivered to its clients a view of maritime behaviours across all regions of the world’s oceans unrestricted by terrestrial limitations. exactEarth has deployed an operational data processing supply chain involving a constellation of satellites, receiving ground stations, patented decoding algorithms and advanced “big data” processing and distribution facilities. This ground-breaking system provides a comprehensive picture of the location of AIS equipped maritime vessels throughout the world and allows exactEarth to deliver data and information services characterized by high performance, reliability, security and simplicity to large international markets. For more information, visitexactearth.com.
About UniSA Ventures Pty Ltd
UniSA Ventures Pty Ltd is the technology commercialisation company for the University of South Australia. Its core role is to identify commercially valuable opportunities from research projects undertaken at the University. Commercially valuable research is traditionally defined in terms of the Intellectual Property (IP) base, which predominantly takes the form of patents. UniSA Ventures secures IP protection and subsequently works with inventors to identify appropriate commercial partners to take on the IP by way of license or assignment and further develop the innovation with the aim of delivering new products and services to market. In some instances a new spinout company may be formed with rights to develop and commercialise the IP assets. In this scenario, UniSA Ventures would normally support the new venture with seed capital and corporate governance resources.
About Myriota
Myriota was founded in 2015 as a spin-out from the University of South Australia’s Institute for Telecommunications Research. Its innovative technologies build on the award-winning outcomes of the Australian Space Research Program’s Global Sensor Network project. Addressing emerging markets for data-driven agriculture, oil and gas, mining, environmental monitoring and defence, Myriota will provide global reach for the Internet of Things.