TZero Technologies Inc., a developer of ultra wideband (UWB) chipsets and solutions, has closed their round of funding totaling $15.5 million. The financing was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners with participation from VentureTech Alliance, the investment management arm of TSMC, and existing investors August Capital and US Venture Partners, confirms Rajeev Krishnamoorthy, chief executive and founder of the company.

The company also announced that Chris Schaepe, general partner of Lightspeed Venture Partners, will take a seat on TZero’s board, and Jim Diller, general partner of VentureTech Alliance will serve as a board observer. They join Irwin Federman, general partner of US Venture Partners, and Andy Rappaport, general partner of August Capital, who also serve on TZero’s board.

TZero will leverage the financing to bring to market its CMOS UWB chipset and software, which are designed to deliver long-range and highly reliable broadband wireless connectivity for consumer electronics (CE), mobile, and networked devices. Key areas of investment will include the rollout and production of the TZero chipset and solutions, as well as sales and marketing. The next-generation UWB semiconductor is scheduled to come to market in 2005.

“We believe that the advantages of UWB technology together with the company's leading-edge development capabilities will create a significant market impact, enhancing commercial wireless infrastructure and enabling broadband wireless delivery of high quality video and audio throughout the home or on the road,” says Schaepe. “This team of repeat entrepreneurs has the experience needed to succeed in a large, competitive market; they have created a wireless semiconductor development infrastructure capable of delivering world-class products and sustaining the company over multiple product generations.”

Rajeev Krishnamoorthy, founder and CEO of TZero, is one of the industry's most widely recognized experts in networking technology. A pioneer in the development of advanced communications systems, Dr. Krishnamoorthy’s work in communications and data networking resulted in the adoption of today’s 802.11b wireless LAN standard and to the first commercially available wireless MIMO system.