Japan’s NEC Corporation has acquired Aspire Technology in Dublin for an undisclosed sum.

Aspire Technology specialises in designing and integrating Open Networks used by telecoms companies.

NEC is a global leader in Open RAN. NEC Open Networks is an industry-leading ecosystem consisting of an end-to-end suite of open products and solutions, including Open RAN components for disaggregated hardware and software, xHaul transport, converged core, automation and orchestration software, and SI services.

“The addition of Aspire Technology strengthens NEC’s SI offering for Open RAN 5G applications, which require an increased level of systems design and integration when compared with legacy ecosystems,” NEC stated.

Aspire Technology in Sandyford was incorporated in November 2009 by Bill Walsh (59).

In Association with

By the end of 2016 the founder has grown his initial equity investment of €1,000 into a company net worth of €1.8m. That year Aspire encountered some turbulence, with staffing reduced to 36 people from 53 the year before.

In May 2017 the company announced plans to increase headcount to 300 people. That expansion was part-funded with €1,050,000 in state aid from Enterprise Ireland, and in March 2020 Aspire received further taxpayer funding of €540,000 in the form of an R&D grant from EI.

Aspire Technology operates through an unlimited company and does not file accounts with the CRO.

As well as its Dublin base, Aspire has operations in Belgrade and Lisbon and says it has customers in 25 countries. A sweet spot is assisting Mobile Network Operators to manage their available spectrum more efficiently to maximise revenue and improve customer experience.

Bill Walsh commented: "We believe the combination of NEC and Aspire Technology will provide tremendous benefits to our customers, both legacy network-based and those evolving to the more Open environment, and also to the broader 5G and Open RAN marketplace, which is growing rapidly.

“We share a common vision of the 5G and Open RAN market, and a history of delivering complex integration projects with some of the largest carriers in the world. Together, we create a compelling and comprehensive 5G solutions portfolio."

Naohisa Matsuda, general manager of NEC’s 5G Strategy and Business, said: " The strong capabilities and the deep pool of talented engineers at Aspire Technology, combined with their portfolio of technology solutions and applications, is a big step forward for our NEC Open Networks strategy. NEC is now better prepared than any supplier to integrate disaggregated network components into a well-tuned ecosystem."

According to Renatus, Aspire Technology was advised by a Focus Capital team of Alan Kelly, Owen Hackett, and Dermot Brennan. RBK provided accounting and tax counsel while LK Shields handled the legals.

Photo: Bill Walsh (right) with colleague Mary-Anne Kelly and EI’s Kevin Sherry pictured at 2017 hiring announcement. (Pic: Fennells)