OAKLAND, California : Lightmatter, a Boston-based startup using light for AI computing, said on Wednesday it raised $154 million and tripled its valuation as customers in need of faster, more energy efficient computing for AI work are buying its systems.
Light has been used for decades in the telecommunications industry to move data across the world with fiber optic cables. Now, large tech companies are looking to use light-based technology in their data centers to reduce power costs. The challenge has been to shrink the size of the devices used to create or control light.
Harris said its chip called Passage that connects other chips by translating electrons to photons and back will be mass produced and used in data centers next year. A large part of the funding will help roll out this product.