Startup Funding: Q3 2024


Numerous new companies burst on the scene in the third quarter of 2024, including startups with plans for customizable RISC-V-based IP for applications from microcontrollers to data centers, high-speed data center interconnects, compute-in-memory LLM inference chips, and surveillance camera SoCs. Although it did not report funding, AheadComputing also launched last quarter to develop RISC-V cor... » read more

AI’s Role In Chip Design Widens, Drawing In New Startups


Using AI in EDA is reinvigorating the whole tools industry, prompting established players to upgrade their tool offerings with AI/ML features, while drawing in startups trying to carve out differentiated approaches to fill unaddressed gaps with new tools and methodologies. Today’s new generation of entrepreneurs is comprised of both young post-grads with innovative ideas and industry veter... » read more

Analog Consolidation Spurs New Round Of Startups


A new wave of startups is rising to meet the growing need for specialized analog customization in chip design projects, opening the door to more affordable custom designs. These startups are breathing new life into a sector, which as a result of consolidation has favored only the largest chipmakers. As larger analog companies acquire smaller ones, many companies that were previously engaged ... » read more

Startup Funding: Q2 2024


AI drew more investors to the chip industry in Q2. Four AI-focused chip startups receiving rounds of more than $100 million, targeting data center ASICs for transformers, highly flexible platforms for the embedded edge, dataflow processors, and mixed-signal neuromorphic chips. In-memory computing also helped boost AI, with three companies either incorporating it into their chips or providing sp... » read more

Startup Funding: March 2024


The challenge of moving data from place to place is increasingly a key concern for chip and system designers, and investors are taking note. Numerous startups developing interconnect technologies received significant backing in March, with approaches spanning chiplet-enabling PHYs, photonic fabrics for disaggregated compute and memory, and telecom transceiver modules. Several new startups la... » read more

Startup Funding: February 2024


A startup developing AI chips dedicated to low-power AI inferencing captured one of the largest rounds of February. The startup, Recogni, already offers a low-power vision inferencing chip. Several other sizeable rounds were focused on the automotive space, with robotaxis, autonomous delivery, and the sensors that enable them. Another active area, power electronics drew funding for several c... » read more

Startup Funding: January 2024


Big rounds marked January, with three companies raising over $100 million. Quantum computing topped the list, with the company that resulted from the merger of Cambridge Quantum Computing and Honeywell's quantum division raking in the third-largest round for a quantum computing company ever. Another chart-topper was an advanced packaging company that began mass production in its first factor... » read more

Startup Funding: December 2023


Photonics and optics were strong in December, with investors funding two different companies using photonic technologies to develop AI chips and interconnects. Another key area — metaoptics — combines what traditionally would be separate lenses and optical components into a single, flat nanopatterned device. Metaoptics are being deployed in applications ranging from AI processing and sensor... » read more

Trendspotting: Automotive IC Startup Funding In 2023


Consumers expect a lot from the electronics in their cars. The parts in the safety-critical systems need to be reliable for up to 18 years, able to handle a range of temperatures, voltages, and vibrations — and all the while be fault-tolerant and make zero errors. On top of those basic requirements, automakers trying to appeal to consumers are adding in more features that communicate with the... » read more

Startup Funding: November 2023


November was a banner month for quantum computing startups, with two raising rounds of $100 million for their superconducting and silicon spin qubit technology. Another significant round went to a company developing photonic-based systems. Several other companies drew funding, including one applying quantum sensors to semiconductor inspection. Sizeable funding also went to an autonomous tran... » read more

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