Inseego (NASDAQ:INSG) CEO Juho Sarvikas used a fireside chat at the 38th Annual Roth Conference to outline what he described as a multi-year transformation of the wireless broadband company, pointing to changes in capital structure, product breadth, go-to-market execution, and an increased emphasis on recurring revenue tied to cloud-managed connectivity.
CEO frames Inseego as a “25-year-old startup” amid expanding wireless broadband demand
Sarvikas, who said he has been in the CEO role for about a year, told investors he was attracted to Inseego for two main reasons: what he characterized as a rapidly expanding opportunity in wireless broadband and the company’s technical capabilities. He highlighted Inseego’s history in the category, noting the company recently marked its 25-year anniversary, and emphasized proximity and partnership ties to Qualcomm, his former employer.
In the enterprise market specifically—what the company calls the “enterprise wireless edge,” including mobile hotspots and fixed wireless access (FWA) routers—Sarvikas cited an expected 27% compound annual growth rate through the end of the decade. He attributed momentum to reliability, lower deployment costs, and centralized manageability, describing a deployment model where businesses can ship and manage routers across branches rather than relying on fixed-line installations.
Product footprint expands across U.S. carriers, including return to AT&T
Sarvikas said the company spent the last 12 months rebuilding foundational operating capabilities, including cost structure, procurement, and how the company develops and partners. He also pointed to leadership changes and what he called a reconfiguration of the value chain and go-to-market platform.
On commercial execution, he contrasted Inseego’s prior position—“three products across two carriers”—with its current standing of “six products across all three” major U.S. carriers. He highlighted what he described as a major milestone: returning to AT&T after roughly a decade without selling into the carrier, now with two products.
Roth analyst Scott Searle also referenced Inseego’s balance sheet changes during the discussion, stating that prior to CFO Steven Gatoff joining, the company had nearly $200 million in net debt and is now below $40 million in net debt. Sarvikas characterized the business as a “completely new story” that has been written over the past two and a half years.
Two different sales dynamics: hotspot roadmaps vs. enterprise FWA market creation
Sarvikas described the mobile hotspot business as tied to traditional carrier procurement cycles and long-range roadmapping, saying Inseego is already discussing first-half 2027 roadmaps with carrier customers.
He said enterprise FWA, by contrast, has historically offered two imperfect options: low-end white-label consumer routers lacking enterprise-grade security and management features, or higher-priced enterprise networking systems that add 5G as a module rather than being “cellular first.” Sarvikas positioned Inseego’s approach as a middle path—“5G first” devices with enterprise-grade capabilities and a price point intended for mass deployment.
He also described a more hands-on go-to-market model for FWA, including training and co-selling with carriers and tailoring solutions with carrier business leadership. He said the company sees this effort as market creation rather than simply competing in an established category.
Channel expansion targets cable, fiber, and large VARs
Beyond carriers, Sarvikas said Inseego is expanding its go-to-market focus to additional segments, including cable operators and fiber players, where he sees “relevant 5G use cases.” He also said the company is launching programs with large value-added resellers such as CDW and SHI, describing the two-tier distribution channel as higher margin but requiring more direct sales effort.
Discussing leadership, Sarvikas cited executives with backgrounds at companies including Cradlepoint, Sierra Wireless, and Vantiva, and said the team is intended to operate at scale while pursuing higher-value market segments and recurring revenue opportunities.
Recurring revenue: Inseego Connect attach and “Subscribe” lifecycle platform
The conversation also focused on recurring revenue. Searle said Inseego has “about $50 million” in recurring revenue with high gross margin and referenced recurring revenue running around $12 million per quarter. Sarvikas said the company’s ARR strategy has two main components:
- Inseego Connect: A cloud management layer for device and network management, which Sarvikas said is increasingly necessary even for single-site deployments. He said the company has improved features and user experience over the past year and added APIs to support integration into customer IT systems. He cited “industry standard numbers” suggesting device-management ARR could be around 10% annually of device value, and said most customers buy two- or three-year bundles for certain products, including the FW2000.
- Inseego Subscribe: A subscriber lifecycle management platform that Sarvikas said supports operators or managed service providers with customer sign-up, catalogs, rate plans, billing, and expense tracking, enabling enterprise self-service and potentially lowering customer acquisition costs. He said the platform is particularly strong in complex Fed and SLED procurement environments.
On timing, Sarvikas said ARR growth should follow the FWA install base. He said the company expects “meaningful mobile growth” from new wins, and described FWA as the key sustained growth driver, with contributions expected from new carrier ramps, two-tier distribution, and cloud attach rates.
Addressing near-term execution, Sarvikas said the company’s first-quarter guidance reflected an approximately six-week execution delay in the new mobile portfolio that impacted revenue, but he characterized hotspot volume as “like a light switch” once programs ramp. He said the company expects to be “in full swing” in the second quarter and anticipates additional customer expansion and “great news on the FWA side” as the year progresses.
About Inseego (NASDAQ:INSG)
Inseego Corp is a U.S.-based technology company specializing in 5G and intelligent Internet of Things (IoT) device-to-cloud solutions. The company develops hardware and software platforms designed to connect devices, vehicles and remote locations to high-speed wireless networks. Its core offerings include mobile hotspots, fixed wireless access gateways and ruggedized routers optimized for enterprise, industrial and government applications.
Inseego’s product portfolio encompasses 5G MiFi® mobile hotspots, virtual network functions (VNFs) for network management, telematics devices for fleet tracking and asset monitoring, as well as a suite of cloud-native software for device lifecycle management and data analytics.
