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AI Networking Chip Startup Celestial AI Secures $275M in Funding Led by Alphabet's CapitalG
Electronic Technology · Semiconductors · yonhap_finance · 2026-09-09
Celestial AI has raised $275 million in a funding round led by CapitalG, valuing the networking chip startup at over $3 billion as it scales AI infrastructure.
What Happened
Significant Funding: Networking chip startup Celestial AI has successfully raised $275 million in a funding round led by Alphabet’s venture capital arm, CapitalG. Other major participants in the round included Atreides Management and Valor Equity Partners, signaling strong investor confidence in the company's growth potential.
Technological Edge: The company specializes in coherent DSP technology, which significantly enhances the speed and distance of data transmission within AI systems. This technology is designed to overcome the limitations of traditional copper-based interconnects, which are increasingly struggling to keep pace with the massive data demands of modern AI models.
Market Validation: Celestial AI has utilized TSMC’s advanced 2nm process to validate its chip performance. CEO Nariman Yousefi emphasized that as AI infrastructure continues to scale, the industry must transition to optical transmission technologies to maintain efficiency and performance.
Strategic Outlook: Investors believe that the future of AI infrastructure is heavily reliant on optical technology as data transmission requirements evolve. This investment underscores the critical need for scalable solutions that can handle the growing complexity of AI workloads without significant information loss.