Chirp

What Chirp does

Chirp is a London-based, privately-held technology company founded in 2011 that has developed a proprietary acoustic data transfer technology enabling frictionless machine-to-machine (M2M) communication. The company's core technology encodes data into audio signals that can be transmitted and decoded by any device equipped with a standard speaker and microphone, eliminating the need for specialized hardware, NFC, Bluetooth pairing, or internet connectivity for short-range data exchange. This positions Chirp in the IoT connectivity, proximity-based authentication, and contactless device-to-device data transfer markets, where it competes against NFC, QR codes, BLE, and ultrasonic alternatives.

With 1-10 employees and approximately $1.34 million in disclosed funding across four rounds between 2011 and 2016, Chirp operates as a small, research-driven organization. The company was co-founded by Anthony Steed and Patrick Bergel, with early backing from Imperial Innovations and UCLB (suggesting academic origins), followed by investments from Angels Den, Renaissance Capital Partners, the London Co-Investment Fund, and GQI. The leadership team includes Stephen Dunford as Chairman and Quentin Roquefort as SVP of Engineering. Chirp's go-to-market appears to center on licensing its acoustic data transfer IP and SDK to enterprises building proximity-based authentication, IoT provisioning, and contactless data exchange applications, though no customer logos, revenue figures, or pricing disclosures are available in the input data.

Name

Chirp

Website

https://chirp.io

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Chirp is a London-based technology company founded in 2011 that encodes data into audio signals to enable frictionless, contactless machine-to-machine communication using existing speakers and microphones for IoT, authentication, and proximity-based data exchange applications.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Acoustic Data Communication Software

NAICS

Other Communications Equipment Manufacturing (334290)

SIC

Communications Equipment, Nec (3669)

akta.pro primary industry

Audio & Speech Analytics (call analytics, QA, insights) (HDAAAFAH)

Keywords

• Data over sound
• Acoustic data transmission
• Near-ultrasonic communication
• Machine-to-machine connectivity
• Audio-based authentication

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Hardware Sales: Sale of audio products including speakers, soundbars, headphones, subwoofers, and amplifiers. One-time purchase model with optional accessories and mounting equipment.
2. Streaming Services Integration: Partnership with hundreds of streaming services for music, podcasts, radio, and audiobooks. Revenue shared through service integrations.
3. Sonos Radio: Original streaming radio content with curated stations and exclusive programming, monetized through advertising and subscription features.
4. Professional Installation Services: Installed solutions for commercial and high-end residential environments through Sonos Professional division.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Chirp provides software (an SDK and API) that enables machine-to-machine data transfer by encoding information into near-ultrasonic sound waves transmitted through a device's existing speaker and decoded by an existing microphone. The technology is sold to developers, OEMs, and enterprises as a frictionless, secure alternative to NFC, Bluetooth pairing, or QR codes for proximity-based data exchange.

Product overview

Sonos offers a unified whole-home audio ecosystem centered around wireless smart speakers and soundbars that work seamlessly together over WiFi. The product portfolio spans multiple categories: Headphones (Sonos Ace), Soundbars (Arc Ultra, Beam Gen 2, Ray), Wireless Speakers (Era 100, Era 100 SL, Era 300), Portable Speakers (Roam 2, Move 2, Sonos Play), Subwoofers (Sub 4, Sub Mini), and Stereo Components (Five, Amp, Port). Users can mix and match speakers across rooms, pair two speakers for stereo sound, build surround sound systems with soundbars and subwoofers, or create custom sets. The ecosystem is controlled via the Sonos app, voice control, or Apple AirPlay 2, and supports streaming from hundreds of audio services plus Sonos Radio. The system is expandable—users start with one room and add more speakers as needed.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Chirp SDK Software development kit that enables developers to embed data-over-sound transmission and reception capabilities into mobile, web, and embedded applications using existing speakers and microphones, for use cases such as device pairing, authentication, and proximity-based data exchange.
• Chirp API Application programming interface that supports Chirp's acoustic data transmission protocol, allowing enterprise integrators and OEMs to incorporate audio-based machine-to-machine communication into their products and services.

Quantifiable outcome

• 4000+ patented innovations supporting best-in-class audio quality

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Best BuycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBest Buy serves as a retail partner enabling online order pickup at select store locations, providing physical retail presence for Sonos products alongside direct-to-consumer sales.
• Streaming Services PartnerscoreTechnology or IntegrationPartnerships with hundreds of streaming services including music, podcasts, radio, and audiobook platforms enabling seamless access through the Sonos ecosystem.
• Apple (AirPlay 2)coreTechnology or IntegrationIntegration with Apple AirPlay 2 enabling iOS users to stream audio content directly to Sonos speakers.
• Extend (Product Protection)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExtended warranty and product protection services offered through Extend for purchase protection and peace of mind.
• Developer EcosystemcoreTechnology or IntegrationDeveloper Portal and Works with Sonos program enabling third-party developers to create integrations and compatible products within the Sonos ecosystem.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Emerging players

• Estimote: Bluetooth-beacon hardware and proximity platform for retail and enterprise. Competes with Chirp for the same enterprise use cases (proximity, in-store engagement) but via BLE rather than audio — a useful adjacent comparable.
• Shopkick: Mobile rewards platform that historically combined audio beacon signals with other proximity tech for in-store engagement. Relevant adjacency because it validated audio-signal-based proximity as a commercial model (later acquired by Trax).
• Unacast: Proximity data and location intelligence platform aggregating BLE, Wi-Fi, and other signals. Indirect competitor for the same enterprise budget on proximity-driven use cases Chirp targets.

Direct peers

• Lisnr: US-based data-over-sound platform that transmits data via inaudible audio signals between devices. Most direct comparable to Chirp, competing in payments, ticketing, and proximity identity with a similar SDK-delivery model.
• Sonarax: Israeli company developing ultrasonic data-over-sound technology for indoor positioning, authentication, and device-to-device communication. Directly competes with Chirp on the core acoustic transmission primitive.
• Signal360 (Signal360/Clipsome): Audio-based proximity and engagement platform that triggers app actions via inaudible audio signals embedded in media. Closely comparable use cases (broadcast/second-screen pairing) to Chirp's original deployments.
• ToneTag: India-based sound-based payments and authentication platform transmitting data via audio for mobile proximity transactions. Comparable to Chirp in using acoustic channels for frictionless M2M communication, especially in payments.

Others

• Audible Magic: Audio fingerprinting and content recognition company. Different use case (content identification vs. data transmission) but operates in the same broader audio-signal-processing stack and shares potential enterprise customers in broadcast/media.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/chirp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chirp-io

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors6 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Chirp