Vertical Semiconductor, a fresh company founded at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has just pulled in $11 million from investors. The cash will help the startup build AI power chips that promise to make artificial‑intelligence workloads faster and more energy efficient.
The funding round—Led by Boston‑based venture firm Dightec Capital—brought in a mix of angels and early‑stage investors who are excited about the company’s approach. Vertical’s team says its chips use a unique design that cuts power consumption while boosting performance for machine‑learning tasks.
“We’re excited to bring our MIT‑crafted technology to market,” said CEO Laura Hughes. “These chips could become the backbone of data centers and edge devices that need to run AI in real time without burning too much power.”
The move puts Vertical in a competitive field where a handful of firms chase the next leap in AI hardware. Chip makers like NVIDIA, Intel and smaller players such as Cerebras Systems and Graphcore all fight to deliver the fastest, most power‑efficient solutions.
With the $11 million seed, the startup plans to ramp up production, hire more engineers, and start pilot projects with cloud‑service providers. Hughes believes the funds will also allow them to file critical patents that protect their technology.
Industry analysts say that the growth of AI applications—from chatbots to autonomous driving—creates a strong demand for specialized hardware. As companies look for ways to run models more cheaply, startups like Vertical Semiconductor are poised to capitalize on that need.
By investing in the MIT spinout, venture funds signal confidence that the next wave of AI chips will come from designers with deep scientific foundations. If Vertical’s plan works, their power‑efficient tech could become a new standard in AI hardware, helping businesses cut costs and reduce carbon footprints while delivering faster performance.
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