Cree is changing its name after pivoting away from LED lighting
Durham semiconductor company Cree said Wednesday that it will change its name to Wolfspeed, highlighting the company’s decision over the past few years to transition from LED lighting to semiconductors.
Historically, Cree, which was founded in 1987, has been known for making LED light bulbs.
But its strategy has shifted markedly under CEO Gregg Lowe, who joined the company in 2017. As profits declined in its LED and lighting business segments, Lowe chose to emphasize the company’s semiconductor business, which was called Wolfspeed.
Wolfspeed, focused on making silicon carbide materials, was growing faster than other parts of the overall business.
“The name change to Wolfspeed will take place later this year to better align with the value proposition that we are committed to delivering to our customers,” a spokesman for the company said Wednesday.
Last year, the company sold its LED business to SMART Global Holdings in a deal worth up to $300 million. In 2019, it sold its lighting business to Ideal Industries.
“We believe this (name change) is a natural progression that builds on our strong reputation of developing silicon carbide-based solutions for the last 30-plus years while at the same time capitalizing on the competitive positioning the Wolfspeed brand has in the market currently,” the company spokesman told The News & Observer.
The company said it would have more to add about the branding transition in the coming months.
The name change was announced during the company’s quarterly earnings call with investors. For the three months ending on Dec. 27, Cree brought in $127 million in revenue, a 5.2 percent increase from the same period last year.
Transition to silicon carbide
Cree is putting a lot of money behind its transition from lighting to silicon carbide, investing $1 billion into a new silicon carbide manufacturing facility.
Much of that investment is going toward a new facility in New York after the state offered Cree a large incentive package last year. However, it is also expanding its facilities in Durham.
Silicon carbide is used as a semiconductor for important technologies like 5G wireless and electric vehicles, two areas that will be the focus of increased demand in coming years.
Cree is already a partner with German car maker Volkswagen, which plans to roll out 70 new electric vehicles over the next decade, Lowe told The N&O previously.
Before Lowe joined Cree as CEO, the company had tried to sell its Wolfspeed semiconductor business.
But the deal for the German firm Infineon to buy Wolfspeed was quashed because it was unlikely to be approved by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
This story was produced with financial support from a coalition of partners led by Innovate Raleigh as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The N&O maintains full editorial control of the work. Learn more; go to bit.ly/newsinnovate
This story was originally published January 27, 2021 at 6:13 PM.
