Electronics Weekly
UltraSoc was one such company but what was particularly interesting about it was their CEO, Rupert Baines. So I reached out to him and to my surprise, he responded.
I was instantly impressed when I spoke to Rupert. During my career, I have had the pleasure of meeting many C-level executives, but few possess confidence combined with humility and a down-to-earth human perspective.
Software
Rupert’s electronics journey started, he told me, when he was eleven years old when he built an AM radio on – literally – a “breadboard”. Radio has that allure. The excitement of wiring up components in the hope of hearing a crackle and whistle until, finally, a voice becomes audible or a band playing music.
For some, the obsession with improving their radio set would have occupied most of their spare time, but Rupert went on to write software in an after-school club.
In those days, computers read punch cards, so if there were coding errors, it was a painful process of rectification. Rupert’s teacher would take his code to Imperial College and return with feedback the next day. For most people, this might have been sufficient, but not for Rupert. He went on to hand-solder his own ZX80 Sinclair computer and started his entrepreneurial career by selling video games. He adds “Space Invaders copies, car racing knock-offs. The usual stuff. ELITE this was not!”
Powerline
Fast forwarding a little, he graduated from Hull University and started his own company with a friend to build a powerline networking system. At the age of 22, if they don’t take a sensible job, most people travel the world or volunteer for a charity. Not Rupert.
“We didn’t know what we didn’t know. It turned out there was quite a lot we didn’t know…”. Sadly, his company wasn’t successful, but the irrepressible Rupert didn’t stop there. He moved to London as a marketeer, then Barcelona to do an MBA, where he learned Spanish “I could manage in a business context, but I had a terrible accent.” Well, I tried to learn Spanish and failed miserably, so hats off to Rupert!
ADI
He then moved to the States to join Analog Devices, ADI, in Boston. “Where they preferred my accent. The beer was surprisingly good, but I did miss proper tea”. He met his wife, Carol also a British expat, in Boston. She worked in Conference and Events and reported to Gideon Gartner, founder of Gartner Group. “Who was a fascinating character,” added Rupert.
At ADI, Rupert started in strategic marketing before identifying broadband as a disruptive product and became a product line manager for ADSL, which was very successful. His passion for telecoms brought him back to the UK, where he joined Cambridge Consultants before going to another startup, First Telecom. They rolled out broadband across Europe, and Atlantic Telecom acquired them.
Then, he switched sides by joining Venture Capital firm Pond Ventures. He really enjoyed working for Pond Ventures, but after leading the investment in Picochip, he joined as a Chief Marketing Officer and stayed for 11 years.
Nigel Toon took over as CEO and shortly afterwards, Mindspeed acquired PicoChip. Rupert moved to Southern California as VP of Marketing and in his words “hated it”. Intel acquired the wireless assets of Mindspeed and integrated them into their 5G infrastructure activities.
UltraSoc
Rupert left Mindspeed, and after some consulting, he was brought in as CEO by VCs for UltraSoc. He says: “This was a struggling university spinout. An excellent team but they’d lost their way; only one customer who was pissed off”.
Under his leadership, UltraSoc grew from a handful of people to over 50 with offices in the UK, Silicon Valley, Taipei and Warsaw. The following few lines from Rupert highlight his self-deprecation.
“At UltraSoc, I earned my Muppet Award Lifetime Achievement award for forgetting my passport, going to the wrong airport, flying to the wrong place…” Wonderful! If only there were more CEOs with Rupert’s wit and humility!
Ultrasoc boasted big customers such as Intel and Huawei. During series B in early 2020, Rupert approached Siemens to join the funding round, but they decided to acquire the company instead.
Videoconferencing replaced face-to-face meetings due to COVID-19 lockdown. Rupert said, “I think I counted we used 14 different conferencing tools – and I still have never met many of those involved!”. Siemens acquired UltraSoc in June 2020.
Serial Entrepeneur
Of course, as well as the Muppet Award, Rupert has won numerous more conventional awards, and was recently a finalist for Barclays Bank “Serial Entrepeneur of the Year” award.
After UltraSoc, Rupert joined Codasip (“RISC-V with a twist”) as Chief Marketing Officer (CMO). He then took a Sabbatical during which he walked the Camino de Santiago, 700 miles across Spain. In his words, “just magical. Brilliant for clearing your head. The sense of history, the gorgeous scenery – and of course lovely food and wine!”. Post sabbatical, he had another spell at a VC, joining Cambridge Innovation Capital as an Entrepreneur in Residence and is still a part of the team there.
Rupert is also co-chair of the UKTIN Semiconductor Expert Working Group on Semiconductors, bringing together about 30 industry figures to make recommendations to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT). He adds, “our first report was published in July, with a load of recommendations, and we were then asked for a follow-up with a ‘deep dive’ into some specific technology roadmaps”.
He is outspoken about the engineering talent in the UK and the opportunities we have.
Rupert is actively a mentor in various programs (ChipStart, DeepTech Labs, Royal Academy of Engineering) and believes passionately in helping future entrepreneurs. He is also a Trustee with the UK Electronics Skills Foundation (UKESF), the charity that encourages young people to study electronics at university and to support them with internship programs. “It is an obligation on those of us who’ve done it put back and help the next wave”.
Dialog Semiconductors
I asked a well-known UK industry giant, former CEO of Dialog Semiconductors, Jalal Bagherli, what he thought of Rupert.
“I can say he is a very determined, resilient and creative semiconductor industry veteran with many successful initiatives of new projects and companies under his belt. He is also very presentable and approachable and a very nice person to work with.”
UKTIN
I spoke to another UK giant, Andy Sellars, Operation Director for Silicon Catalyst, who also chairs the UKTIN Semiconductor Expert Working Group with Rupert:
“Rupert is an incredible driving force for the UK semiconductor industry. His track record of building teams, growing startups and delivering a ‘go-to market’ strategy speaks for itself. He is highly respected and well-liked by colleagues across the industry. As co-chair of the Semiconductor Expert Working Group, it is a real pleasure working with him.”
But Rupert has known tragedy too. Two years ago his young son killed himself after serious mental illness. “There is still a stigma over mental health,” he told me. “We need to be more aware, more supportive. One in four people will suffer a mental health problem of some kind, while suicide is the biggest cause of death for men under 50. This is a big problem: I am doing various things to help but it is an area I am looking to do more.”
As a parent of four daughters myself, my heart goes out to Rupert, his wife and their family. The loss of a child is painful beyond measure and empty words offer little consolation. My deepest condolences, Rupert.
Turning to brighter things, I asked him about his hobbies. “I like to read, go to concerts and museums. I love skiing but sadly I’m not as good at it as I’d like to be. One of my former colleagues attends a gig every week making it to 50 a year! That’s a goal”
He added, “I am also famous for loud shirts.” Really? I hadn’t noticed!
Rupert Baines is a trailblazing serial entrepreneur with an energy and passion that are both infectious. Somewhere out there, reading this blog is another entrepreneur. Where will their journey start?
Author
A veteran of 37 years in the Analog Integrated Circuit Design industry, Ash Madni continues to contribute to the rapidly changing world of Microelectronics. He has worked for a number of big companies, such as Ferranti, STL, GEC Plessey Semiconductors, Maxim Integrated, Dialog Semiconductors, to name a few. He has also worked in startups, such as Phyworks.
During his tenure at GEC Plessey Semiconductors, Ash raised over 20 patents, including Synthesis Exploiting Algebraic Design, which was used successfully in a number of products. Ash is currently running his consultancy, Madni Technologies (UK) ltd.
For relaxation he enjoys walking and spending time with his wife, daughters and grandchildren. He is also active as a published composer and has started his first Sci-Fi horror novel Transmutation – ‘The Rise of Hemonra’.
