Nicslab

Nicslab develops electronics for photonic and semiconductor systems, spanning benchtop instruments, system-on-module drivers and ASIC IP blocks. Its product portfolio includes XDAC precision multi-channel source measure units for semiconductor characterization and automated testing; Mini ATE, mixed-signal automated test equipment that integrates analog force and measure into digital test vectors; XSOM, a compact system-on-module photonic IC driver for controlling thermo-optic phase shifters, biasing photodiodes and driving dedicated laser/TEC channels; and XEIC, a digital IC that unifies multi-channel DAC/ADC control behind a single SPI interface for high-density photonic and electronic test systems.

The multichannel source measurement systems are offered in 8-, 40- and 120-channel configurations with unipolar, bipolar or differential output. The XPOW line uses an 8-bit AVR RISC microcontroller with USB connectivity, while the XDAC line uses a quad-core 64-bit ARM v8 processor with Gigabit Ethernet and USB. Both provide 16-bit resolution; basic unipolar ranges reach 0-34 V and 0-300 mA, and bipolar models reach ±16 V and ±500 mA, with additional premium voltage and current ranges. Measurement times range from roughly 104 ms for a single XDAC channel to about 449 ms for 120 channels. Seven multiconnector options (FFC, SMA, D-Sub 25, IDC, banana and 2.54 mm headers) address different 40- and 120-channel wiring needs.

Luminate describes Nicslab, Inc. as a fabless chip company building integrated circuits for optical solutions in data centers, AI, instrumentation and quantum computing, combining power supply, signal processing, sensing and control into a single compact solution for data center, autonomous vehicle, space and semiconductor applications.

Founding story

Nicslab was founded by Andri Mahendra, described as its sole founder, who is originally from Indonesia. He received a scholarship for a master's degree in electrical engineering and was a joint PhD student at the School of Electrical and Information Engineering and the School of Physics at the University of Sydney, sponsored by the Indonesia Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP Scholarship). His stated technical background covers computer architecture, quantum computing, silicon photonics, electronics-photonics integration, data mining, reconfigurable computing, signal processing, embedded systems and hardware/software co-design. The company was established as an immigrant single-founder startup while he supported a family.

Business model

Nicslab sells hardware instruments and system-on-module products, supported by graphical software and SCPI programming interfaces, through direct sales and authorized distributors. It also offers a Hardware as a Service subscription that provides access to semiconductor test equipment together with engineering support, maintenance and future upgrades without upfront capital expenditure. Chip-scale and OEM/ODM solutions for large-scale integration are offered on a contact-the-company basis.

Revenue is generated from sales of instruments and modules (multichannel source measure units, test equipment, system-on-module drivers and ICs), premium software feature tiers and range options, OEM/ODM and chip-scale engagements, and a Hardware as a Service subscription that bundles equipment access with support, maintenance and upgrades.

Traction

The company lists a full product line available for order through authorized distributors and publishes a customer testimonial from Caltech/JPL NASA researchers. A startup profile records the company at the "Full Product Ready" stage with one employee, and it has been selected into accelerator programs including INCUBATE, Batchery, Techstars Space Accelerator, Garage+ and Luminate.