Celestial AI, a Silicon Valley chip startup focused on boosting artificial intelligence speed, announced on Tuesday that it has secured an additional $250 million in venture capital, bringing its total funding to $515 million. The company is utilizing photonics technology, which employs light rather than electrical signals, to enhance the connection speed between AI computing chips and memory chips. This connection speed, known as memory bandwidth, is crucial for advancing AI systems and can impact whether a chip is subject to U.S. export controls. While Nvidia currently leads in memory bandwidth with its proprietary technologies, startups like Celestial AI, Lightmatter, and Ayar Labs are racing to develop alternatives. Celestial AI, supported by Advanced Micro Devices’ venture arm, is creating a “photonic fabric” technology that aims to provide high-speed connectivity while optimizing space and power efficiency. The recent funding round was led by Fidelity Management & Research and included participation from BlackRock, Maverick Capital, Tiger Global Management, and other notable investors. CEO Dave Lazovsky highlighted that Celestial AI’s technology offers energy efficiency and lower latency compared to existing solutions.
