German Semiconductor Startup Semron Raises $7.9 Million for 3D AI Chip Technology
The startup aims to position itself as a leader in semiconductor technology, contributing to the advancement of the European chip industry and addressing the growing demands of AI processing.
Semron, a German semiconductor startup founded by Kai-Uwe Demasius and Aron Kirschen, is working on a transformative 3D AI chip technology. The company has secured €7.3 million ($7.9 million) in seed funding from investors such as Join Capital, SquareOne, OTB Ventures, and Onsight Ventures. Semron's innovative chips, utilizing "memcapacitors," aim to bring advancements to semiconductor design, particularly for smart devices.
Traditional chips use transistors and electrical currents for calculations. However, Semron's approach involves using electric fields instead of electronic currents, leading to higher energy efficiency and the ability to stack multiple layers of computing capacity on a single chip. The use of "memcapacitors," or capacitors with memory, allows for energy-efficient computations, reducing energy consumption and heat generation.
Semron has demonstrated energy efficiency exceeding 3,500 TOPS/watt for AI workloads in internal testing, outperforming existing techniques by 35 to 300 times. This breakthrough addresses significant challenges faced by modern semiconductor development, such as cost, size, energy consumption, and heat dissipation. The technology has the potential to enable advanced AI applications to run locally on smart devices like phones or VR headsets.
The seed funding will support hardware and software development, with plans to quadruple Semron's headcount. While the startup acknowledges challenges in manufacturing and commercialization, the funding and investor support indicate significant interest in its revolutionary chip technology.
