Acuity advises Argon Design on its Sale to a Global Semiconductor Company

Acuity’s Matthew Byatt advised Argon on the transaction.

Argon has designed video IP blocks for tier 1 IP and silicon vendors, co-authored the AV1 and VP9 video coding specifications and sold multiple licenses of its proprietary IP which includes:

• Argon Streams – comprehensive verification tools for HEVC, VP9 and AV1 decoders which allow users to verify that their decoders are compatible, error free and future proof; and
• Argon360 – a leading hardware-based real-time video stitching IP core for use in SOCs, allowing devices to create high quality streamable 360^O panoramic and spherical virtual reality videos.

Argon has a highly skilled and experienced team and is headquartered in Cambridge, UK.

Alan Scott, CEO of Argon Design, said:

“I really enjoyed working with Matthew and the Acuity team on this transaction. They presented our business in a compelling way to a global audience, helped us to negotiate a great deal for our employees and shareholders, and provided invaluable support during the completion and due diligence processes. Their particular experience with acquisitions in the semiconductor space, and their attention to detail at all stages, ensured that the whole sale process was a great success. We couldn’t have chosen a better partner.”

Matthew Byatt, Managing Partner at Acuity Advisors, said:

“We thoroughly enjoyed working with Alan and Argon Design on this transaction. Argon’s engineers operate at the leading-edge of technology development in the video processing industry. Argon is a truly world class business with an internationally recognised deep domain capability in video processing. We are pleased to have been able to facilitate this cross-border transaction, which is Acuity’s eighth transaction this year and our eighteenth in the sector. We wish the Argon team every success in the future.”