Nice, France – 18th February, 2026 – Firecell and Accelleran today announce the merger of the two companies to create a complete private 5G solution for industrial autonomy, critical infrastructure, and defense connectivity. The merger brings together Firecell’s core network and NMS (Network Management System) with Accelleran’s programmable RAN, management, and AI capabilities into a pre-integrated sovereign private 5G solution. The company’s offering targets ports, factories, defense installations, and logistics facilities, where connectivity is critical for operations.

The industrial sector is moving from monitoring equipment to running fully autonomous operations. Robotic arms, AGVs, drones, and remote-controlled machinery require deterministic connectivity – a dropped connection, for example, can result in halted production and safety exposure. Private 5G addresses this, but deploying it today typically means assembling components from multiple vendors, each with its own release cycle, support path, and integration requirements.

Firecell’s new platform delivers:

- Global spectrum coverage: support for all FDD and TDD bands, ensuring seamless deployments worldwide

- High-performance connectivity: sub-millisecond latency supporting thousands of concurrent IoT devices with dedicated network slicing and Voice over NR and mission-critical push-to-talk capabilities

- AI-driven network intelligence: real-time optimisation of network capacity and energy through programmable xApps and rApps intelligent controllers

- 100% European-developed software: full on-premise deployment, providing full data autonomy and sovereignty for defense and critical infrastructure.

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Built for system integrators

Firecell will distribute its new offering through system integrators (SI) and telco partners. System integrators can procure individual parts of the network – CORE or RAN – independently, giving them the flexibility needed to address specific project requirements or existing infrastructure. Pre-integration enables deployment in weeks, with a single support path and release cycle for projects and sites where speed and simplicity matter.

End customers will be able to reach operational independence with minimal training. The solution is configurable by the customer or SI (parameter changes, log capture, QoS tuning) without vendor support tickets. For Firecell’s premium SI partners, custom network behaviours will be built through xApps and rApps for verticals such as defense, industrial automation, or energy-optimised campus deployments.

Existing Firecell and Accelleran product lines will remain actively maintained and supported.

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Investment and leadership

The merger is backed by a €7.9 million investment round led by existing investors Matterwave Ventures, BPI France, Qbic, and Cogito Capital Partners.

The combined company will operate under the Firecell name and brand with Claude Seyrat as designated CEO and will double its engineering and commercial footprint, with teams across France, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Poland, and deployments in Europe, the United States, and Asia.

“Industrial operations are deploying robots, drones, and autonomous vehicles at scale, and they need predictable connectivity, not a patchwork of vendors,” said Claude Seyrat, CEO of Firecell. “As private 5G projects evolve toward multi-site deployments – smaller in scope but growing in number – system integrators need a single reference solution they can standardise on. This merger gives them exactly that: one efficient, hardware-agnostic offering so they can focus on delivering high-value applications and ROI to their customers, not on integration work.”

“We’re witnessing a fast growing private 5G demand across ports, airports, mines, defense installations, and utilities,” said Robert Gallenberg, Partner at Matterwave Ventures. “This merger creates a credible European alternative – a complete, sovereign platform that system integrators can build a private 5G practice around. The single-stack approach, combined scale, and five-country footprint positions Firecell as an upcoming European leader in this market.”

Firecell will launch its integrated private 5G solution at Mobile World Congress (March 2–5, 2026, Fira Gran Via, Barcelona) in Hall 5, booth 5B41.

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including shareholder approvals, regulatory clearances, and execution of definitive agreements. Completion is expected by the end of Q1 2026.

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About Firecell

Firecell develops purpose-built private 5G connectivity for industrial environments. Its solution integrates core network, programmable RAN, AI-driven network intelligence, and management system – hardware-agnostic, European sovereign, and deployable in weeks. Following its merger with Accelleran, the company operates across France, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Poland, with deployments in Europe, the United States, and Asia. Founded in 2021, Firecell serves system integrators and enterprises in ports, factories, defense, logistics, and critical infrastructure.

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About Accelleran

Established in 2013 in Antwerp, Belgium, Accelleran delivers Open RAN-based private 5G solutions with real-world deployments across multiple sectors. The company offers a CU/DU platform and a RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) with an SDK for developing xApps and rApps focused on energy optimisation, smart handovers, network tuning, and capacity-aware planning.

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