Navitas Semiconductor, the industry leader in GaN power integrated circuits (“ICs”) and Anker Innovations, a global leader in fast-charging technology, announced the signing of a new strategic partnership.
Gallium nitride (GaN) devices are the leading-edge of power semiconductor technology, operating 20x faster than traditional silicon chips, and can achieve up to 3x more power or 3x faster charging in half the size and weight. Navitas’ GaNFast™ power ICs integrate GaN power, GaN drive, protection and control and are designed to be easy-to-use, ‘digital-in, power-out’ circuit building blocks.
Anker and Navitas have an established relationship, starting in 2017 when Anker was one of the first companies to create next-generation, fast-charger prototypes and then qualify the breakthrough new GaN technology. The 2019 Anker PowerCore Fusion PD combination charger and portable power bank was a game-changing shift in mobile power, using Navitas GaNFast power ICs to reach new levels of efficiency and power density.
Steven Yang, CEO of Anker Innovations said: “I believe that having engineering teams from Anker and Navitas sitting side by side on a daily basis will greatly improve the efficiency of the product development process, translating into faster and better chargers for our customers.”
The new agreement dedicates engineering teams from both Navitas and Anker to be co-located at Anker offices to develop and launch leading-edge GaNFast chargers to accelerate time-to-market. The initial focus will be on next-generation mobile chargers but will expand into the high-growth energy-storage markets. The deal also provides a longer planning horizon for co-operative marketing across all media platforms and in-person events, such as the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), in Las Vegas.
“As both a long-term customer and investor in Navitas, Anker has demonstrated a passion for innovation and vision for the future of charging,” said Gene Sheridan, co-founder and CEO of Navitas. “Mobile charging is a $2B target market for GaN power ICs, and working with Anker on energy-storage is aligned with our renewable / solar energy expansion strategy.”
The first two fast chargers released under the new partnership are the 30W USB-C and 65W 2C+A chargers in Anker’s collaboration with the “League of Legends” multi-player online battle arena video game, played on phones, tablets and laptops. With fast action and intensive, detailed graphics, the game has a high draw on battery power, and fast charging – with portability – is crucial for any LOL gamer.
At only 28 x 29 x 32 mm, the 30W USB-C ‘Jinx’ is a similar size to the original 5W so-called ‘sugar-cube’ phone charger and 70% smaller than the standard silicon-based 30W.
The 65W 2C1A ‘Yasuo’ charger, has 2x USB-C and 1x USB-A port to charge three devices simultaneously such as a phone, headphones and a laptop – with enough power for high-performance gaming laptops.
