Japanese electronics giant Renesas is collaborating with French chip and module provider Sequans Communications to create 5G and 4G cellular IoT modules to be available worldwide.

Renesas will build the IoT modules based on Sequans’ Monarch LTE-M and NB-IoT platform. The modules can provide IoT companies with an integrated microcontroller (MCU) plus connectivity platform that streamlines and simplifies IoT design for many applications, including smart city, smart home and industrial IoT.

The collaboration between the two companies includes providing support for multiple network providers worldwide.

The first Renesas module based on Sequans Monarch is expected to debut before the end of the year, to be followed by additional modules with added features such as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) capabilities.

“Our partnership with Sequans will expand our cellular IoT module offerings with 4G and 5G cellular connectivity,” said Roger Wendelken, senior vice president at Renesas. “Sequans has been a leader in IoT connectivity technology for many years and their Monarch technology delivers not only the industry’s lowest power consumption, but also reliability and security. This collaboration enables us to offer a new suite of IoT modules alongside our MCUs, delivering the advanced capabilities that meet the application needs of our IoT customers.”

The collaboration brings together the LTE-M and NB-IoT technology of Sequans and the MCU expertise and marketing power of Renesas’ sales channels.

“One of the biggest inhibitors to IoT success is the high complexity and cost of system design,” said Georges Karam, Sequans CEO. “Our collaboration with Renesas alleviates this by providing a pre-integrated platform that saves IoT customers time and money, so they can focus on their IoT service offerings. We are very pleased about the value our partnership with Renesas creates.”

Founded in 2003, Sequans is based in Paris, France, with offices in the USA, UK, Israel, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, South Korea and China.