Broadcom Considers $100B Acquisition of Qualcomm; Ayla Nets $60M Chinese Funding

Broadcom CEO Hock E. Tan was at the White House amid growing reports that the company is weighing a bid for Qualcomm. Broadcom Ltd. is rumored to be exploring a bid of up to US$100 billion for Qualcomm Inc., according to Bloomberg. As Jeremy Cowan notes, a successful offer could become one of the largest in the semiconductor sector. Meanwhile, Ayla Networks, a leading enterprise‑grade IoT Platforms‑as‑a‑Service provider, secured $60 million in Series D funding from Chinese investors, including Run Liang Tai Fund (RLT) and Sunsea Telecommunications Co. Ltd. Broadcom’s potential move would see the company in discussions with advisors this weekend, with a possible offer of approximately $70 per share in the coming days. If realized, the deal would surpass Softbank’s acquisition of ARM Holdings in 2016. (See our earlier analysis: Three IoT lessons from the Softbank acquisition of ARM.) On Thursday, Broadcom CEO and president Hock E. Tan announced a “redomiciliation process” to shift the corporate group’s parent from Singapore to the United States, regardless of forthcoming U.S. tax reform. In a 2016 article, Frost & Sullivan titled "Will Qualcomm’s acquisition of NXP Semiconductors trigger a new wave of market consolidation?" highlighted the trend of large tech consolidations. Qualcomm’s share price has been pressured by an ongoing legal dispute with Apple and challenges in closing the planned $47 billion purchase of NXP Semiconductors NV—delays from European regulators and opposition from hedge fund Elliott Management Corporation, which argues the offer undervalues NXP. On the day, Qualcomm shares closed 13% higher at $61.81, valuing the company at $91 billion. Broadcom stock rose 5.5%, pushing its market cap to nearly $112 billion. (See: Qualcomm introduces new platform naming structure as ‘processor’ doesn’t capture its anthology of technology.)

IoT platform provider Ayla Networks wins $60m in Series D funding

Santa Clara, California‑based Ayla Networks raised $60 million in Series D financing led by China’s Run Liang Tai Fund (RLT) and Sunsea Telecommunications Co. Ltd. The capital will support expansion of Ayla’s product suite, enabling large enterprises to convert IoT data into actionable intelligence and broaden its partner ecosystem.

Ayla has traditionally focused on HVAC, water management, and home control, but has recently expanded into retail, industrial, telecommunications, service provider, and medical sectors. The volume of data entering its platform is reportedly growing 500% year‑on‑year. David Friedman, Ayla’s CEO and co‑founder, said, “The Ayla platform offers highly configurable capabilities that allow customers to ingest data from any sensor and IoT cloud. It simplifies the application of intelligence and analytics across diverse data sets, turning raw data into real business value.” Run Liang Tai explained the investment aims to accelerate Ayla’s growth. The company is partnering with Sunsea Telecommunications, a public firm serving China’s telecom market, to build a stronger presence in the rapidly expanding Chinese IoT sector. Ayla and Sunsea IoT (a Sunsea subsidiary) are creating a joint venture, Ayla Sunsea, to market and deliver Ayla’s solutions from its China headquarters.

(Also see: Global IoT platform provider Ayla Networks announces $60 million in Series D financing.)