Inseego Corp. (Nasdaq: INSG) is an industry leader in intelligent device-to-cloud solutions that extend the 5G network edge, enabling broader 5G coverage, multi-gigabit data speeds, low latency, and strong security to deliver highly reliable internet access. Inseego’s innovative mobile broadband, fixed wireless access (FWA) solutions, and software platforms incorporate the most advanced technologies (including 5G, 4G LTE, WiFi 6, SD-WAN, SASE, and others) into a wide range of products that provide robust connectivity indoors, outdoors, and in the harshest industrial environments. Designed and developed in the USA, Inseego products and SaaS solutions build on the company’s patented technologies to provide the highest quality wireless connectivity for service providers, enterprises, and government entities worldwide.
QUESTION: Dr. Mukherjee, Could you tell something about Inseego to our readers?
Dr. Ritesh Mukherjee: Inseego creates 5G solutions that bring breakthrough applications to life. It is not the first time we are reinventing wireless. We created the world’s first mobile hotspots. We don’t just invent new products; we also invent the technologies that make them work better. Inseego holds vital patents for antenna designs, thermal performance, quick response algorithms, and other know-how that sets us apart. Our 4G and 5G devices — modems, routers, and MiFi® mobile hotspots — are trusted by millions of users worldwide, including consumers and remote workers in every industry. Our new 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) solutions deliver better home broadband experiences with much higher speed, superior connectivity, and flexibility than traditional wireline. We are bringing game-changing enterprise SaaS solutions to power work from anywhere, IoT, edge computing, metaverse, and connected cars, along with unsurpassed 5G connectivity.
QUESTION: Covid-19 has accelerated digital transformation for both businesses and individuals. How do Inseego’s solutions and innovations help customers create value in digital transformation?
Dr. Ritesh Mukherjee: Quarantines and self-imposed isolation have accelerated the need for digital transformation for enterprises. Inseego’s game-changing wireless and innovative cloud-delivered solutions have shown how enterprises can benefit from mobile broadband and fixed wireless access. Our solutions power a legion of remote workers in every industry—Inseego 5G wireless routers power SD-WAN, SASE, private networks, remote monitoring, and industrial automation. We are piloting solutions for real-time responsiveness, ultra-reliable connectivity, and security. These solutions enable enterprises to take their businesses to the next level.
QUESTION: We know many operators have selected your solutions in APAC like Telstra and others. What is the story behind this outstanding international success?
Dr. Ritesh Mukherjee: Building a wired network, especially in rural areas and other remote locations — getting permits, digging trenches, and laying cable — is often too complicated and costly for fixed broadband service providers. And even in the areas they serve, customers are often frustrated by slow speeds that don’t keep up with today’s demanding applications. We are working with Telstra, Vodafone Qatar, Optus, and many other operators in APAC to deliver gigabit-plus speeds with sustained high throughput for fast, reliable internet access. Our indoor and outdoor solutions can connect any warehouse, branch office, clinic, factory, farm, retail store, university campus, industrial IoT site, entertainment venue, or individual residence at speeds that outperform typical wired connections. Our cloud-delivered SaaS solutions complement these connections with security, manageability, and visibility features to enable businesses of any scale.
QUESTION: The Asia Pacific is a colossal market of 2.2 billion people. What do you think of the market outlook of the Asia Pacific region? Does Inseego have any plan for investment and development in the APAC region?
Dr. Ritesh Mukherjee: The Asia Pacific is an overall moderately developed mobile broadband market. Most governments in the Asia Pacific recognize that mobile broadband can be a catalyst to transform their economies. Several markets in APAC have new mobile entrants who are disrupting the market. The pandemic has proved the need for superior mobile solutions prompting several telcos to accelerate their 5G rollouts. These factors make it an exciting region with tremendous potential for Inseego. We are looking to bring our enterprise solutions to these markets to transform connectivity for smart manufacturing, oil and gas, search and rescue, retail, hospitals, IoT, and remote work. We are working with Telstra, Vodafone, and other operators and with local partners to accelerate 5G enterprise deployments. We will continue to expand our resource investments in the region through local partnerships and personnel onboarding as needed.
QUESTION: What exciting solutions can we see from Inseego in the recent future? How will these solutions enable operators and enterprises to meet challenges?
Dr. Ritesh Mukherjee: At Inseego, we are constantly working on bringing new solutions that will enable consumers and enterprises to achieve their business goals by partnering with operators. We are getting new enhancements to our wireless portfolio, allowing operators to introduce new capabilities. We are bringing further improvements to enable superior connectivity and security for remote workers and small-medium enterprises.
The different pandemic waves and increased workers’ desire not to be tethered to an office are clear indications for enterprises to improve and enhance work-from-home (WFH) or distributed workforce solutions. Unfortunately, there has been no significant improvement to WFH solutions from a technology standpoint. Most workers complain about Internet connectivity issues and low performance from their VPN clients and meeting tools, leading to work inefficiency and low morale. Inseego’s 5G FWA solutions with inbuilt security are the perfect solution to provide immediate additional bandwidth over traditional home internet. They have inbuilt security and authentication to bring Corporate WiFi home to allow traffic segmentation, safety, and authorization. It enables enterprise IT to support workers at home.
Traditional coffee shops, neighborhood grocery stores, local restaurants, local finance and legal, and a host of other businesses power the local community. These businesses need to get online and digitize different aspects of their business. Inseego’s 5G solutions with inbuilt security are the perfect solution to keep businesses connected. These solutions can provide secure wireless connections for credit card processing, in-store guest WiFi, inventory management, voice, payroll systems, and a host of other online processing. Every small business deserves 10x speeds at a tenth the cost irrespective of their size, industry, location, or ownership. Inseego 5G solutions provide the ability to keep local businesses running.
In the future, we are also looking to partner with operators to introduce edge processing capabilities for low-latency services.
QUESTION: Dr. Mukherjee, we know you joined the company in 2021. Can you share a little more about your previous experience in the industry with us? How did Inseego attract you, an industry veteran, to join the company?
Dr. Ritesh Mukherjee: I lead enterprise networking as SVP/GM at Inseego. Before joining Inseego, I was Vice President at Reliance Jio, managing a global portfolio of market-leading innovative enterprise solutions. Before that, I was Vice President, Product Management at 128 Technology which was acquired by Juniper Networks, leading SD-WAN and cloud development, and Manager, Product Management at Cisco, leading the software operating systems group. I have engineered some of the largest deployments of enterprise networks for leading businesses and operators globally.
Inseego realized how 5G FWA could be a game-changer for the enterprise industry by enabling smart homes, hospitals, cities, industries, connected cars, augmented reality, and agriculture. They brought me in to lead the enterprise division to realize that vision. It was a no-brainer for me as my experience and skillset perfectly matched the needs to realize Inseego’s vision. We also have a stellar HR team looking for candidates interested in building the next generation of telecom products. We have numerous new opportunities, and I encourage folks looking to lead telecom innovation to reach out to us.
