Celestial AI Raises $250 Million in Venture Capital
Celestial AI, a Silicon Valley-based startup focused on accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) systems, has secured an additional $250 million in venture capital. This latest funding round brings the company’s total investment to $515 million.
The company aims to overcome a major hurdle in AI: the speed of data transfer between computing and memory chips. To address this challenge, Celestial AI is utilizing photonics, a technology that uses light instead of electrical signals, to create high-speed connections between chips. The company’s official website states that this technology tackles a critical bottleneck in AI systems referred to as memory bandwidth, which dictates how rapidly data moves between components. Memory bandwidth is so significant that it influences whether chips are subject to U.S. export controls, such as restrictions on China’s access to advanced AI technology, according to a Reuters article.
Currently, Nvidia dominates this market with its proprietary NVLink and NVSwitch technologies. However, Celestial AI is developing a “photonic fabric” that acts as a bridge between chips, which, according to the report, offers faster data transfer while conserving space and power. Celestial AI CEO Dave Lazovsky explained that the technology delivers similar performance to Nvidia’s solutions but with improved energy efficiency and lower latency.
The funding round was led by Fidelity Management & Research and included investments from BlackRock, Maverick Capital, Tiger Global Management, and former Cadence Design Systems CEO Lip-Bu Tan. Previous investors, such as AMD Ventures, Koch Disruptive Technologies, and Singapore’s Temasek, also participated. Celestial AI is part of a growing number of startups, including Lightmatter and Ayar Labs, striving to provide alternatives to Nvidia’s dominance, the Reuters report adds.
