Company profile
Silicon Microgravity
University of Cambridge spin-out developing resonant MEMS accelerometers, gyroscopes and gravimeters for inertial navigation and gravity surveying, manufactured at its Cambridgeshire technology centre.
Company overview
Operating under the SMG name, Silicon Microgravity develops resonant MEMS inertial and gravity sensors for navigation and subsurface measurement. Its semiconductor activity centres on MEMS accelerometers, gyroscopes and gravity sensors, using technology developed at the University of Cambridge by Professor Ashwin Seshia. Products include low-noise accelerometers for GPS-denied navigation, tactical-grade gyroscopes and the GAIA gravity measurement system. The company reports GAIA field trials in Australia and Wales in 2024, followed by its commercial launch and the creation of Motion and Gravity divisions in 2025. Applications span aerospace, defence, robotics, geophysics, civil engineering and environmental monitoring. Companies House records Silicon Microgravity Limited as active, incorporated on 16 September 2014, with a registered office at Cambridge Innovation Park in Waterbeach. The company describes its operational origins as a Cambridge spin-out founded in 2015 with BP support. It reports a management buy-out in 2021 and a subsequent shift from oil and gas towards inertial and surface gravity sensing.
Semiconductor activity
Primary capability: MEMS / Sensors. Supply-chain role: MEMS sensor developer, Gravity measurement system supplier.
Technologies and capabilities
- MEMS
- Sensors
- Silicon
- Resonant MEMS sensing
- Inertial sensing
- Gravity sensing
- Low-noise accelerometers
- Tactical-grade gyroscopes
- Automated environmental compensation
GAIA gravity measurement system; 25g and 100g MEMS accelerometers; MEMS gyroscopes
Markets served
- Aerospace
- Defence
- Robotics
- Mineral exploration
- Civil engineering
- Environmental monitoring
UK presence
Registered office: G2 & G3 Blenheim House, Cambridge Innovation Park, Waterbeach, Cambridge CB25 9GL. Part of the Cambridge / East of England cluster.
Research links: University of Cambridge spin-out using resonant MEMS sensor technology developed by Professor Ashwin Seshia., BP supported the spin-out to develop MEMS gravity sensors for oil and gas applications..
Funding and transactions
A company announcement dated 16 June 2026 reports £6 million secured to strengthen UK sovereign semiconductor capability; the supplied text does not identify investors or funding terms.
["A management buy-out was completed in 2021."]