As I described in a recent PRO article, the bulk of global investment is currently premised on a bet that an AI infrastructure buildout can eventually result in a workable balance between the old economy and the economy of the future. It will be quite some time before the general outcome of that proposition can be gauged, but Japanese electronics giant TDK has just provided an example of the sort of deals we can expect to see more and more of as the overall landscape evolves.
Fabric8Labs, the San Diego-based company that leverages its proprietary Electrochemical Additive Manufacturing (ECAM) process to produce thermal management hardware for the data center and semiconductor industries, has entered into an agreement to be acquired by TDK, in an all-cash deal worth up to $400 million. Fabric8Labs will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of TDK, and the total value of the transaction will depend upon Fabric8Labs’ ability to meet undisclosed performance milestones.
Through its venture arm, TDK has been an investor in Fabric8Labs since at least 2021, when the Japanese multinational invested in the startup’s Series A round worth nearly $20 million. Additionally, TDK participated in two subsequent funding rounds, each worth $50 million. With its process for printing liquid-cooling cold plates, Fabric8Labs is targeting a market that AM Research forecasts will see exponential growth through 2035, as one of the biggest long-term catalysts for AM demand expansion.
TDK’s journey from early investor in Fabric8Labs to parent company has proceeded in parallel to, and in alignment with, its Digital Transformation initiative, a plan to build the TDK enterprise AI business on a foundation of the company’s own internal AI adoption strategy. TDK’s acquisition of Fabric8Labs gives both companies the opportunity to use the buildout of TDK’s in-house data management transformation as a test run for a broader B2B scale-up in the future.
High-purity components. Image courtesy of Fabric8Labs.
In a press release about TDK’s acquisition of Fabric8Labs, the president and CEO of TDK, Noboro Saito, said, “This acquisition marks a pivotal step in accelerating TDK’s value creation. By harmonizing our technologies with Fabric8Labs’ innovative capabilities, we will be uniquely positioned to provide customers with innovative thermal management systems, high-efficiency power components, and advanced packaging techniques that define the next generation of data center performance.”
Jeff Herman, the CEO of Fabric8Labs, said, “Joining TDK group will give us the resources to scale our technology globally and to supply our current and future Tier 1 customers with the solutions they need with confidence in our ability to scale while we remain focused on our core mission.”
Moreover, TDK could ultimately leverage Fabric8Labs’ technology for data center thermal management in more ways than one, as the ECAM process is also a
As I described in a recent PRO article, the bulk of global investment is currently premised on a bet that an AI infrastructure buildout can eventually result in a workable balance between the old economy and the economy of the future. It will be quite some time before the general outcome of that proposition can be gauged, but Japanese electronics giant TDK has just provided an example of the sort of deals we can expect to see more and more of as the overall landscape evolves.
Fabric8Labs, the San Diego-based company that leverages its proprietary Electrochemical Additive Manufacturing (ECAM) process to produce thermal management hardware for the data center and semiconductor industries, has entered into an agreement to be acquired by TDK, in an all-cash deal worth up to $400 million. Fabric8Labs will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of TDK, and the total value of the transaction will depend upon Fabric8Labs’ ability to meet undisclosed performance milestones.
Through its venture arm, TDK has been an investor in Fabric8Labs since at least 2021, when the Japanese multinational invested in the startup’s Series A round worth nearly $20 million. Additionally, TDK participated in two subsequent funding rounds, each worth $50 million. With its process for printing liquid-cooling cold plates, Fabric8Labs is targeting a market that AM Research forecasts will see exponential growth through 2035, as one of the biggest long-term catalysts for AM demand expansion.
TDK’s journey from early investor in Fabric8Labs to parent company has proceeded in parallel to, and in alignment with, its Digital Transformation initiative, a plan to build the TDK enterprise AI business on a foundation of the company’s own internal AI adoption strategy. TDK’s acquisition of Fabric8Labs gives both companies the opportunity to use the buildout of TDK’s in-house data management transformation as a test run for a broader B2B scale-up in the future.
High-purity components. Image courtesy of Fabric8Labs.
In a press release about TDK’s acquisition of Fabric8Labs, the president and CEO of TDK, Noboro Saito, said, “This acquisition marks a pivotal step in accelerating TDK’s value creation. By harmonizing our technologies with Fabric8Labs’ innovative capabilities, we will be uniquely positioned to provide customers with innovative thermal management systems, high-efficiency power components, and advanced packaging techniques that define the next generation of data center performance.”
Jeff Herman, the CEO of Fabric8Labs, said, “Joining TDK group will give us the resources to scale our technology globally and to supply our current and future Tier 1 customers with the solutions they need with confidence in our ability to scale while we remain focused on our core mission.”
Moreover, TDK could ultimately leverage Fabric8Labs’ technology for data center thermal management in more ways than one, as the ECAM process is also a