Antwerp-based Tusk IC develops the transmitter and receiver chips for dishes that can communicate with satellites in low Earth orbit. This will open up a market currently dominated by Elon Musk’s Starlink.
Satellite communications are evolving rapidly toward low-Earth-orbit (LEO) constellations. However, adoption has been held back by the need for reliable, affordable flat-panel antennas. Tusk IC aims to change that by bringing ground terminals to anyone wanting to tap into that network, without being locked into Starlink’s ecosystem.
Tusk IC was founded in January 2018 as a spinoff from KU Leuven’s ESAT-MICAS research group, which specializes in millimeter-wave integrated circuits. Leveraging experience in the automotive and industrial segments, the fabless design company focuses on the booming satcom market. Bits&Chips talks to CEO Kathleen Philips and CTO Shailesh Kulkarni about the challenges and opportunities ahead.
This interview can be watched on Youtube.
