Chip manufacturer Fractile is set to spend £100m building up its UK operations, the country’s AI minister, Kanishka Narayan, announced on Tuesday.
Founded in 2022, Fractile builds hardware and software solutions for AI inference, including chips which it says work more efficiently, quickly and cheaply than US giant Nvidia's GPUs.
The company will invest £100m over the next three years, to expand its sites in London and Bristol and create a new engineering facility.
“I am setting Britain’s AI leaders a challenge – bang the drum for startups, spread the opportunities to every corner of our country, and embrace risk,” said Narayan, who was appointed AI minister last year.
“By investing in British tech innovation, just as Fractile is doing today, we can reinforce our leadership in AI and boost our influence on the global stage.”
Fractlie’s backers include the Nato Innovation Fund (NIF), Cocoa VC, Kindred Capital and Arm cofounder Hermann Hauser. The company raised $15m in 2024 and Sifted reported this month that it had secured a further $22.5m.
The company did not respond when asked how it will secure the £100m it plans to invest in its UK presence.
Last week, Sifted reported that one of Fractile’s cofounders had left the company in 2024 due to concerns over his links to China.
Three people familiar with the situation said Song left the company after concerns were raised over his links to China. Two specifically cited concerns over his earlier attendance at a Chinese university with ties to the military.
A spokesperson for Fractile said Song had “left to pursue other technical and business interests in 2024,” adding that “it is very common in technology companies for people involved in early research and exploration to move on to other projects.” Song did not respond to requests for comment.
