Bosch Ventures invests in Sonexos

Stuttgart, Germany / Lausanne, Switzerland – Bosch Ventures is investing in Swiss deep-tech company Sonexos as part of its CHF 5 million Pre-Series A financing round. The round will support the industrialization and market introduction of Sonexos’ novel plasma-based technology for active noise control.

Sonexos is developing a new way to tackle one of acoustics’ persistent engineering challenges: low-frequency noise from fans, compressors and motors. Conventional solutions typically require significant space and material and can restrict airflow. Sonexos instead uses an electronically controlled layer of plasma to absorb sound, creating a thin, lightweight solution with no moving parts.

Deep tech with industrial relevance and societal impact

For Bosch Ventures, Sonexos brings together differentiated deep technology, industrial relevance and the potential to improve everyday life, a strong expression of Bosch’s “Invented for life” principle.
“Technology is most valuable when it moves out of the laboratory and solves problems people experience every day. Sonexos is a strong example of that principle: outstanding deep tech addressing a very tangible challenge, with applications ranging from the appliances in our homes to the infrastructure powering the digital economy,” says Dr. Ingo Ramesohl, Managing Director of Bosch Ventures. “What convinced us in particular is the credible pathway toward industrial scale.”

Swiss Technology for global Markets

Sonexos’ technology originated in research at EPFL and combines plasma physics, high-voltage electronics and adaptive control software. Its Plasmacoustic Metalayer™ absorbs acoustic energy directly at a surface instead of relying on conventional bulky passive absorbers or loudspeakers that cancel sound at a particular listening position.

Sonexos’ initial target markets include domestic appliances, Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) and industrial systems. The company is also expanding into datacenter and energy-storage cooling, where increasingly powerful computing infrastructure is driving demand for both greater cooling capacity and effective noise management. The potential impact extends beyond acoustic performance. More compact noise-control systems can give engineers greater freedom when designing products in which space, weight and airflow are critical constraints. In applications such as data-center cooling, reducing fan noise without obstructing airflow could also help reconcile growing infrastructure needs with the interests of surrounding communities.

From breakthrough technology to series production

“This investment marks an important step from breakthrough technology toward industrial-scale production,” says Mark Donaldson, Founder and CEO of Sonexos. “Together with our customers and partners, we are now turning plasmacoustics into a technology that can be deployed at scale.”

The investment comes at a decisive stage in Sonexos’ development. The company is already conducting paid prototype-integration programs with global manufacturers of domestic appliances and HVAC equipment. The new financing will be used primarily for industrialization, customer programs and the further development of Sonexos’ intellectual-property portfolio.

The seed investment in Swiss-based Sonexos underscores Bosch Ventures’ international commitment to advancing deep-tech innovation. Complementing this international investment approach, Bosch Ventures announced its 100 million Euro Spark Fund earlier this month, dedicated to investing in German deep-tech startups.