# AI chips

Samsung and EU Scaleup Fund back efficient AI startup Euclyd in €200m Series A
News
September 15, 2026
Samsung and EU Scaleup Fund back efficient AI startup Euclyd in €200m Series A
Former ASML CEO Peter Wennink is also joining the Dutch startup as chairman of the board
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
US VC FirstMark: ‘Europe is underrated’ right now among American investors
Pro
Interview
September 11, 2026
US VC FirstMark: ‘Europe is underrated’ right now among American investors
The New York firm has backed startups like Legora, Harmattan AI and Synthesia
Anne Sraders
VCs pick out 19 startups making AI more efficient
Pro
Investor survey
August 24, 2026
VCs pick out 19 startups making AI more efficient
The AI boom means compute resources are struggling to keep up with demand. These startups are working to reduce the cost and energy requirements of models
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
UK chip startup Fractile in talks to raise at $6.5bn valuation, reports say
News
August 20, 2026
UK chip startup Fractile in talks to raise at $6.5bn valuation, reports say
The company, headed up by CEO Walter Goodwin, last raised $220m in May from Founders Fund and Accel
Tom Nugent
Callosum raises $100m seed led by Atomico to tackle AI compute bottlenecks
News
August 20, 2026
Callosum raises $100m seed led by Atomico to tackle AI compute bottlenecks
UK startup’s platform helps developers route workloads across different models and chips to reduce costs
Martin Coulter
James Dacombe’s Olix raises at $3.3bn valuation
News
August 3, 2026
James Dacombe’s Olix raises at $3.3bn valuation
The 25-year-old’s company has tripled its valuation to $3.3bn since it raised $220m in February this year
Tom Nugent
Why European VCs are quietly cheering the chip rout
Pro
Analysis
July 30, 2026
Why European VCs are quietly cheering the chip rout
The chip rout could put more emphasis on next-generation chip design and architecture, say investors
Freya Pratty and Tom Nugent
World Fund, IQ Capital among backers of €91m QuantumDiamonds round
News
July 9, 2026
World Fund, IQ Capital among backers of €91m QuantumDiamonds round
The Munich-based company builds semiconductor-inspection equipment to improve yield production for global chipmakers
Tom Nugent
ASML eyeing more Mistral-style startup bets, CEO says
Pro
Interview
June 16, 2026
ASML eyeing more Mistral-style startup bets, CEO says
The CEO sat down with Sifted to talk Mistral, physical AI and why M&A is an “exception”
Anne Sraders
UK AI Hardware Plan ‘significant step’ forward, but missing key energy question
Pro
News
June 9, 2026
UK AI Hardware Plan ‘significant step’ forward, but missing key energy question
The AI Hardware Plan sets out how the government will back British companies developing chips and semiconductor technologies
Tom Nugent
Exclusive: ASML spinout Invisix raises €20m seed round
Pro
Exclusive
June 1, 2026
Exclusive: ASML spinout Invisix raises €20m seed round
Dutch startup wins backing from London-based Transition Ventures and Hitachi VC arm
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
What US chipmaker Cerebras’s IPO could mean for startups like Fractile
Pro
Analysis
May 19, 2026
What US chipmaker Cerebras’s IPO could mean for startups like Fractile
US chipmaker Cerebras went public with a 68% IPO day pop last week — and some believe it could bode well for European counterparts
Anne Sraders and Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
Exclusive: The ‘lobby wars’ pitting Europe’s chip startups against semiconductor giants
Pro
Analysis
May 18, 2026
Exclusive: The ‘lobby wars’ pitting Europe’s chip startups against semiconductor giants
Supported by the European Commission, six chip startups have created a new lobby group to represent their interests
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
A PhD pivot, a stint in VC and a rumoured Anthropic deal: why Europe is watching Walter Goodwin
Pro
Profile
May 12, 2026
A PhD pivot, a stint in VC and a rumoured Anthropic deal: why Europe is watching Walter Goodwin
‘He projects this underlying inevitability to what he is building towards’
Maya Dharampal-Hornby and Freya Pratty
11 future of compute startups to watch, according to VCs
Pro
Investor survey
May 4, 2026
11 future of compute startups to watch, according to VCs
Sifted asked investors from AlbionVC, Oxford Science Enterprises, Imec.xpand and Seedcamp for their picks
Tom Nugent
Exclusive: Nvidia challenger Arago tapes out first chip in a milestone move for semiconductor startup
Pro
Exclusive
April 7, 2026
Exclusive: Nvidia challenger Arago tapes out first chip in a milestone move for semiconductor startup
Sifted understands the Paris-based startup is preparing a $150m Series A as it plans to increase chip production
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
Chip maker Fractile in talks to raise $200m at unicorn valuation, reports say
News
March 31, 2026
Chip maker Fractile in talks to raise $200m at unicorn valuation, reports say
The UK startup produces chips which its says work faster and cheaper than Nvidia’s
Maya Dharampal-Hornby
Chips startup Vertical Compute raises €37m to tackle AI’s memory overload
Pro
News
March 4, 2026
Chips startup Vertical Compute raises €37m to tackle AI’s memory overload
The startup has taped-out a first chip design developed in partnership with global semiconductor manufacturer TSMC
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
Exclusive: Stealth AI startup founded by Cambridge scientists unveils plan to challenge Nvidia’s dominance
Pro
Exclusive
March 3, 2026
Exclusive: Stealth AI startup founded by Cambridge scientists unveils plan to challenge Nvidia’s dominance
Zettafleet's team met at Cambridge University’s Machine Learning Systems Lab
Freya Pratty
AI chip startup Axelera AI raises $250m to take on Nvidia
News
February 24, 2026
AI chip startup Axelera AI raises $250m to take on Nvidia
The Dutch startup builds chips for inference, a growing market so far dominated by US tech titan Nvidia
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
UK government-backed photonics chip startup targets $100m+ Series B
Pro
Interview
February 18, 2026
UK government-backed photonics chip startup targets $100m+ Series B
Optalysys is exploring licensing its chip designs to leading industry players
Tom Nugent
Chip maker Fractile to invest £100m in UK operations
News
February 10, 2026
Chip maker Fractile to invest £100m in UK operations
Fractile builds hardware and software solutions for AI inference
Freya Pratty
AI giants are racing to secure shrinking memory. It’s creating opportunities for startups
Pro
Analysis
February 9, 2026
AI giants are racing to secure shrinking memory. It’s creating opportunities for startups
Memory components have seen on-going shortages and price hikes, spiking investor interest in startups developing new approaches to the problem
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet
Exclusive: Nanomaterials startup Chiral raises $12m seed to build the ‘next ASML’
Pro
Exclusive
February 6, 2026
Exclusive: Nanomaterials startup Chiral raises $12m seed to build the ‘next ASML’
The Swiss startup has built a high-precision robotic system to handle nanomaterials and position them on a chip
Daphné Leprince-Ringuet

# AI chips

Samsung and EU Scaleup Fund back efficient AI startup Euclyd in €200m Series A

US VC FirstMark: ‘Europe is underrated’ right now among American investors

VCs pick out 19 startups making AI more efficient

UK chip startup Fractile in talks to raise at $6.5bn valuation, reports say

Callosum raises $100m seed led by Atomico to tackle AI compute bottlenecks

James Dacombe’s Olix raises at $3.3bn valuation

Why European VCs are quietly cheering the chip rout

World Fund, IQ Capital among backers of €91m QuantumDiamonds round

ASML eyeing more Mistral-style startup bets, CEO says

UK AI Hardware Plan ‘significant step’ forward, but missing key energy question

Exclusive: ASML spinout Invisix raises €20m seed round

What US chipmaker Cerebras’s IPO could mean for startups like Fractile

Exclusive: The ‘lobby wars’ pitting Europe’s chip startups against semiconductor giants

A PhD pivot, a stint in VC and a rumoured Anthropic deal: why Europe is watching Walter Goodwin

11 future of compute startups to watch, according to VCs

Exclusive: Nvidia challenger Arago tapes out first chip in a milestone move for semiconductor startup

Chip maker Fractile in talks to raise $200m at unicorn valuation, reports say

Chips startup Vertical Compute raises €37m to tackle AI’s memory overload

Exclusive: Stealth AI startup founded by Cambridge scientists unveils plan to challenge Nvidia’s dominance

AI chip startup Axelera AI raises $250m to take on Nvidia

UK government-backed photonics chip startup targets $100m+ Series B

Chip maker Fractile to invest £100m in UK operations

AI giants are racing to secure shrinking memory. It’s creating opportunities for startups

Exclusive: Nanomaterials startup Chiral raises $12m seed to build the ‘next ASML’