Company Overview

Today, over 3.7 billion people cannot access the Internet and 1.2 billion people have no connectivity at all. Without access to information people are at a distinct disadvantage in terms of social and economic development. While mobile network operators (MNOs) recognize these underserved markets, until now it has not been economically feasible to cover these areas. By leveraging deep domain expertise in wireless radio technologies and focusing on the limitations that have prevented ubiquitous connectivity, Vanu has developed technology and business model innovations that allow mobile network operators to deliver affordable coverage solutions in off-grid markets. Vanu is the only company that runs rural networks on its own software technology and designs and optimizes products to the unique needs of rural markets. Removing the technological barriers, Vanu offers network operators a new wholesale business model to profitably deliver connectivity to the world’s most remote areas, all without the need to build out a dedicated network and is committed to ensuring no community is left behind.

Vanu is a global provider of turnkey mobile communications solutions that allow MNOs to serve off -grid markets. Vanu’s headquarters are strategically located in key markets in Gurgaon and Bangalore, India, Kigali, Rwanda and Lexington, MA, USA, providing geographic proximity of deployments in six continents. The company was founded in 1998 and grew out of groundbreaking research in software defined radio at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Vanu developed the Anywave® Base Station. Anywave was the first software defined radio certified by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Off-grid markets present unique challenges for operators that require specialized solutions. As the first software defined radio certified for commercial use in the United States, Vanu is a pioneer in the area of open platform innovation and uses the performance and cost advantages of these open platforms to connect off-grid communities.

Vanu helps close the digital divide by providing cellular mobile connectivity to remote, off-grid markets that have not had opportunities to seize the economic, social and cultural advantages generated by cellular coverage. Built to minimize costs for power, backhaul and maintenance, Vanu’s equipment, tools and services enable MNOs to provide off-grid coverage profitably. In addition, Vanu’s unique high-resolution coverage mapping tool, VanuMaps™, provides MNOs, their partners and potential investors with the high-resolution network planning data needed to more accurately and efficiently identify the return on investment afforded by serving previously uncovered villages.

A Reputation for Innovation and Industry Firsts

Vanu has developed many patented technologies and has a proven track record of industry firsts, which Vanu has deployed on six continents.

• In 2004, Vanu Anywave® is the first product to receive FCC certification as a Software Defined Radio.
• In 2006, Vanu successfully demonstrated the first GSM/CDMA/iDEN base station followed by the world’s first commercial deployment of a dual-standard GSM/CDMA Radio Access Network.
• In 2007, chosen IEEE Spectrum Magazine’s “Wireless Winner.”
• In 2007, Vanu was awarded contract by General Communications Inc. (GCI) for rural Alaska.
• In 2008, Anywave® Base Station named Product of the Year, Mass NetComms Council.
• In 2012, Vanu deployed the first zero-OPEX in-building coverage solution in India.
• In 2014, Vanu deployed the first successful cellular suppression system that prevented the use of illicit cellphones in prisons on all cellular frequencies and standards.
• In 2014, SatCom Stars-Most Innovative Product/Service of the Year, 2014
• In 2016, Vanu began construction of the first solar-powered, wholesale network in Rural Rwanda.
• In 2017, Vanu aided national mobile network operators by restoring communications in Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands following Hurricane Maria.
• In 2018, Vanu launches VanuMaps™: A Comprehensive, Accurate Wireless Connectivity Mapping Resource for affordable effective Rural Coverage.
• In 2018, awarded contract for 1,000 off-grid sites with BSNL in India
• In 2018, AppsAfrica.com – Changing Africa Award, 2018
• In 2019, awarded contract by Africa Mobile Networks to expand off-grid villages in Africa
• In 2019, Vanu selected by MTN to provide OpenRan Communication Systems for Off-Grid Communities across Africa