Nexthop AI, a startup developing next-generation artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure for cloud companies, has launched from stealth with $110 million in funding. The round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with additional investment from Kleiner Perkins, WestBridge Capital, Battery Ventures, and Emergent Ventures.
This funding will accelerate the development of Nexthop AI’s networking solutions designed for both cloud and hyperscale AI clusters. The increasing demands of AI training and inference are driving hyperscalers to invest billions in evolving their GPU and networking deployments, with an estimated capacity exceeding two gigawatts annually. These companies require highly optimized hardware and software infrastructure that can be tailored for data center builds.
“The world’s largest cloud providers need a new generation of networking capabilities to keep pace with the demands of AI workloads,” said Guru Chahal, partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners. “Nexthop AI is filling a critical gap in this $35 billion market with its deep domain expertise, pioneering technology, and customised solutions, positioning the company as the go-to partner for leading cloud providers seeking to seize the AI revolution,” he added.
Nexthop AI specializes in creating custom networking solutions tailored for hyperscalers, which integrate seamlessly into their cloud infrastructure. This includes designing networking hardware to customer specifications, a network operating system of their choice tested by Nexthop AI, along with pre-tested optical and electrical interconnects from the customer’s supply chain.
“Hyperscalers need the ecosystem to innovate with them to accelerate their infrastructure deployments,” said Anshul Sadana, chief executive officer of Nexthop AI. “Nexthop AI is a force multiplier, as it partners with and works as an extension of the cloud companies’ engineering teams. This disruptive model enables cloud companies to build the most cost- and power-efficient AI solutions.”
The network has historically played a crucial role in advancing technological breakthroughs, from mainframe to PC, client-server to cloud, and now, the AI wave.
Nexthop AI’s products are compatible with open-source network operating systems, such as SONiC.
