Intel Acquires Canada’s Smart Edge For $27M To Advance 5G

Intel is acquiring the software business Smart Edge for $27 million from Pivot Technology Solutions based in Toronto, Intel said in a blog post on Wednesday (Oct. 16).

The software runs on Intel chips and speeds up computing devices by dividing data and keeping it closer to users. Intel is planning to package it into equipment for the latest 5G wireless technology that has started to roll out.

“Intel is the right company and brand to advance and scale Smart Edge’s software solution,” Kevin Shank, CEO of Pivot Technology, said in the post. “Our partnership with Intel will leverage Pivot’s core strengths as a technology integrator and service provider with Intel’s advanced technology solutions to drive the adoption of the Smart Edge platform. We look forward to collaborating with Intel to develop and take to market many new edge computing use cases.”

The cloud-native Smart Edge can be scaled for multi-access edge computing (MEC).

“The expansion of computing in the network and at the edge is an important growth opportunity for Intel — an estimated $65 billion silicon addressable market by 2023. Edge computing is an opportunity that is accelerating with the rollout of 5G networks,” according to the blog.

About 25 Smart Edge employees will start working for Intel when the deal is finalized, which is expected to be in a few weeks.

“This transaction enhances our ability to address the 5G network transformation with a leading position in edge computing. We plan to take full advantage of our combined technologies and teams to accelerate the development of the edge computing market while creating a compelling solution for customers,” Dan Rodriguez, Intel vice president in the Data Center Group and general manager of the Network Compute Division, said in the post.

Verizon has activated its 5G wireless network in Chicago and Minneapolis and plans to roll it out to 30 more markets by the end of the year. AT&T has plans to release its own 5G network, and it’s currently marketing it with the 5G+ Network brand. T-Mobile and Sprint also have plans to release 5G networks this year, but neither is activated.