Executive Committee
Dr. Frederick J. Bruwer
President & CEO
Dr. Bruwer founded Azoteq in 1998 with a visionary strategy to develop affordable intelligent switches on silicon. Under his leadership, Azoteq became a reputable leader in sensing- and LED driver solutions.
Previously, Dr. Bruwer founded Nanoteq, which developed the Keeloq technology for remote keyless entry (RKE). Keeloq became the world standard for RKE, and Nanoteq was sold to Microchip Technology (NASDAQ: MCHP) in 1995, where he was appointed VP for the Secure Data Products division.
Dr. Bruwer holds bachelor’s, master’s (Cum Laude), and doctoral degrees from the University of Pretoria in South Africa.
Pieter Pretorius
COO
Mr. Pretorius joined Azoteq in 2004 from Nanoteq, where he was the Divisional Manager of security Solutions. During the period 1999–2001, Mr. Pretorius played a key role in the establishment of a European presence for Nanoteq’s Security Solutions as the VP for Security Solutions at Comparex Security Solutions in Germany. He is currently the Chief Operations Officer at Azoteq.
Prior to this, Mr. Pretorius was also part of the original Keeloq development team at Nanoteq. In 1995, he became Nanoteq’s Manager for Security Services, with a focus on providing IT security solutions to the commercial market.
Mr. Pretorius holds a Bachelors Degree and a Masters Degree (Cum Laude) in Electronic Engineering from the University of Pretoria.
Jean Viljoen
CSO
Mr. Viljoen joined Azoteq in 2000 as a DSP Application Engineer. He was one of the key architects who created the ProxSense® product line in 2004 and has been involved with the product line ever since. In 2005 Mr. Viljoen moved into a marketing role and also took on responsibility for the application group at the Paarl Development Centre. Since 2010 he has been responsible for worldwide marketing and business development activities of the 2 sensor families of products. Mr. Viljoen leads Azoteq’s worldwide expansion by establishing sales and distribution channels in all key markets.
Mr. Viljoen holds a bachelor’s degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Stellenbosch and an MBA from the University of Stellenbosch Business School.
Dr. Dieter Mellet
CTO
Dr. Mellet started his career in 2001 as an integrated circuit (IC) designer with South African Micro-Electronic Systems (SAMES) in Pretoria and joined the Azoteq team in 2003. Originally a micro-electronic design engineer and team leader, Dr. Mellet was later appointed as VP of IC Design and has led the micro-electronic design team in the development of intelligent switching solutions, LED drivers, and sensor technologies. Dr. Mellet is one of the original inventors of the ProxSense® and ProxFusion® technologies. In 2019 he was appointed the position of Chief Technology Officer.
Dr. Mellet holds a Doctoral degree in Engineering from the University of Pretoria and an MBA from the University of Stellenbosch Business School.
Cobus Engelbrecht
CFO
Mr. Engelbrecht joined Azoteq in 2024 from Heineken Beverages SA where he was involved in the Africa business unit, managing programs and business case studies across the continent, both in a financial as well as a project management capacity.
In his current capacity at Azoteq, Mr. Engelbrecht is responsible for planning, implementing, managing, and controlling all financial-related activities. This includes responsibility for accounting, finance, budgeting and forecasting, statutory compliance, taxation, legal, treasury, facilities management, deal analysis and negotiations, and investor relationships with both private and institutional financing.
Mr. Engelbrecht holds a B Comms Hons Economics from the University of Stellenbosch, a B Accounting Hons from UNISA, and is a registered CA(SA).
Advisory Board
Mark Tyndall
Mr. Tyndall is currently EVP of Corporate Development and Investor Relations at Indie Semiconductor, an automotive-focused NASDAQ-listed company, having held the post of Semiconductor Partner at Alexa Capital from 2022 to 2024.
Before Alexa Capital, Mr. Tyndall was Senior Vice President of Corporate Development and Strategy at Dialog Semiconductor from 2008 to 2021 and a key member of the management team, transitioning the company from a sub-100 million company to a trade sale to Renesas for $6 billion during this period.
Since 1999, he has held senior corporate development roles at MIPS Technologies and Infineon Technologies, responsible for many M&A and capital financing deals in the semiconductor industry over the past 25 years.
Mr. Tyndall is a member of the board of directors of Probe Test Solutions Ltd. (PTSL) and the new Silicon Valley start-up Paramagnetix, in addition to holding advisory positions at Azoteq, Alexa Capital, and Lime Microsystems.
Janice Mori
Ms. Mori is an accomplished Silicon Valley executive, a hub where she has forged significant partnerships and collaborates with industry leaders. She has been instrumental in introducing multiple flagship consumer products to the market. Amongst Ms. Mori’s achievements are the effective revitalization of a semiconductor division valued at half a billion dollars and the skillful integration of a substantial $500 million acquisition in Japan.
Leadership is a passion and Ms. Mori excels in assembling and directing high performance teams that work harmoniously and drives business success. She maintains a positive and enjoyable workplace atmosphere, even amidst challenging assignments but is not afraid to disrupt when needed.
Ms. Mori collaborates with some of the world’s most influential consumer goods makers to align technology roadmaps and bring disruptive technologies to market. She is currently consulting on strategy, product marketing, business development and go-to-market for Azoteq, as well as with select companies in microLED and AI.
Rohit Malhotra
Mr. Malhotra currently holds the position of Executive Vice President of Sales and Business Development at XMOS Ltd, a Bristol-based semiconductor company specializing in programmable processor array devices.
Previously, he served as Vice President of Sales (Asia) at Dialog Semiconductor (now Renesas) from 2010 to 2021.
During his tenure, he successfully grew regional sales from $15 million in 2010 to over $400 million, establishing a dominant market presence across numerous Tier 1 organizations in Asia.
With a career spanning since 1998, Mr. Malhotra has held senior roles in marketing, business development, and sales at STMicroelectronics and Numonyx (Micron), contributing to substantial revenue and market share expansion in analog, networking, wireless, and memory segments.
Corporate Responsibility
Reduction of hazardous substances (RoHS and RoHS2)
Azoteq products do not contain substances listed by RoHS Directive (EU) 2015/863 amending Annex II to Directive 2011/65/EU in concentrations above the specified limits in the homogeneous materials used by the product. Azoteq makes use of declarations from manufacturers and suppliers to ensure that the products delivered to customers are in compliance with the above. In some instances, Azoteq may have material data or test reports to confirm compliance. These third-party test reports are, however, only available for selected products.
REACH Compliance.
Azoteq is aware of and agrees with the purpose of REACH (the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization, and Restriction of Chemicals Regulation (EC) No. 1907/2006). The components and products sold by Azoteq do not contain substances on the applicable SVHC candidate list in concentrations greater than 0.1% by weight per component.
EPR.
AZOTEQ: LEADING THE WAY IN SUSTAINABLE SEMICONDUCTOR SOLUTIONS.
Azoteq is deeply committed to sustainability and environmental responsibility, adhering to the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations for the conscientious end-of-life management of our semiconductor products.
Our Commitment to EPR Compliance
As the global community increasingly turns to technology solutions to address environmental challenges, the semiconductor industry must also ensure that it has robust systems in place for the environmentally sound disposal or recycling of its products at the end of their useful life.
In response to this need, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and Environment (DFFE) has implemented an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulation.
Azoteq, as a responsible corporate entity, is dedicated to upholding the legislative requirements set forth by the EPR regulation, which became effective in May 2021. We take pride in our compliance efforts, which significantly contribute to waste reduction and minimize the environmental impact during the disposal phase of our products.