Safran acquires stake in Kalray, European leader in new-generation processors for critical onboard systems

Paris Air Show – June 22, 2017.

Safran today announced that it had acquired an equity interest in Kalray through its Safran Corporate Ventures subsidiary, which invests in disruptive technology businesses.

Investment supports technology cooperation

The transaction further consolidates technology cooperation between Kalray and Safran Electronics & Defense since 2013, focused on development of new generation digital cores for critical onboard systems. This technology has potential applications for a number of Safran products. Cooperation has until now been funded through joint French and European projects, with extensive participation by CEA in particular.

“This technology cooperation is emblematic of Safran’s proactive strategy in new generation digital cores,” said Martin Sion, Chief Executive Officer of Safran Electronics & Defense. “The first applications will be available in the near term for non-critical systems, particularly in the field of health monitoring, leveraging the extremely high processing capabilities with optimal operating reliability offered by Kalray processors.”

€23.6 million¹ in funding raised with legacy partners and new Asian investor

Safran Corporate Ventures is participating in a €23.6 million round of fresh funding alongside investors that have backed Kalray for many years, including CEA Investissement and ACE Management, in addition to a new Asian investor, the Pengpai investment fund. This capital injection will fund development of the third generation of Kalray processes and accelerate the company’s international growth.

“For nearly a decade Kalray has successfully developed processor technology with an industry-leading ratio of computing power/energy consumption for components this size. This is essential, especially for more electric aircraft. In addition to new applications in aerospace, health monitoring and cybersecurity, Kalray has vyer promising opportunities in the automotive industry – notably for self-driving cars – and in data centers. The complementary fit across these three areas was a factor in our investment decision,” added Eric Dalbiès, Safran Executive Vice President for Strategy and M&A and Chairman of Safran Corporate Ventures. 

Following this transaction Grégoire Aladjidi, Head of Safran Corporate Ventures, will become a member of the Kalray Supervisory Board.

¹ An initial tranche of €13.6 million will be immediately available, with a second tranche of €10 million scheduled for the end of fin 2017.