EnSilica has reported record annual revenue of £27.8m as more of its custom semiconductor programmes progress from design work into recurring chip supply.
Revenue for the year ended 31 May increased 53% from £18.2m, while EBITDA rose from approximately break-even to £5.9m. Operating profit reached £2.9m and profit after tax was £1.2m, reversing the previous year’s £2.7m loss.
The Oxfordshire-headquartered company designs application-specific integrated circuits for customers across space and communications, photonics, industrial and automotive markets. It operates a fabless model, retaining design and intellectual property capabilities while using external semiconductor foundries for manufacturing.
Five EnSilica ASICs are now shipping in volume and generating recurring silicon revenue. Another 14 chip programmes remain in design, creating a larger pipeline of products that could enter long-term supply as customer projects move into production.
Chip supply revenue increased 16% to £6.7m during the year. EnSilica’s measure of lifetime supply visibility, representing expected revenue already secured under customer contracts, rose 50% from $250m to $375m.
Its broader sales and opportunities pipeline also increased from $400m to more than $600m. That growth came despite approximately $125m of opportunities leaving the pipeline after converting into contracted supply, which gives the company a larger base from which to pursue its target of four to five new design-and-supply contracts each year.
Cash performance improved alongside revenue. Net operating cash flow increased 195% to £6.2m and cash at year end rose from £2m to £7.6m, while the balance sheet carried £4.4m of loans.
EnSilica has also raised additional equity as it expands. A £10m fundraising completed in March was followed after the financial year end by an oversubscribed July transaction raising approximately £14.9m before expenses.
The capital is being used to expand engineering capacity and support programmes intended to generate future recurring supply revenue. That investment requirement reflects the economics of custom semiconductor development, where engineering work and design expenditure occur well before chips begin shipping to customers in meaningful volumes.
Average headcount increased 11% to 198 during the year, including 172 employees in research, development and technical roles. The larger technical workforce allows EnSilica to run more programmes concurrently, but it also increases the level of revenue needed to support the cost base.
Management now describes the company as having moved from a design-services model towards a semiconductor design-and-supply platform. The distinction is important because recurring chip revenue can continue for years after the original design work has been completed, giving successful programmes a different earnings profile from one-off engineering contracts.
The company still carries the execution risks associated with that model. Semiconductor programmes have lengthy development and qualification cycles, customer forecasts can change and engineering investment is required before the full value of future supply contracts is realised.
EnSilica says more than 80% of expected FY27 revenue is already associated with contracted customers or contracts in negotiation. It is forecasting EBITDA of between £5.5m and £6.5m for the current financial year, with gross margins expected to remain broadly stable as operating expenditure rises to support expansion.
After several years of investment in design programmes, FY26 provides the clearest financial evidence yet of EnSilica’s transition towards recurring semiconductor supply. Maintaining that trajectory will depend on converting the 14 chips still in development while continuing to replenish the pipeline with new customer programmes.
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