Volantis Raises $88M for Photonic Memory Layer in AI Inference
Volantis has secured $88 million in funding to develop a revolutionary photonic link between AI compute and memory. This technology is designed to use gallium arsenide lasers instead of indium phosphide, addressing constraints in the latter's supply chain.
The Focus on Photonics in Europe
The Netherlands is currently constructing a €153 million indium phosphide pilot line in Eindhoven, scheduled to open in 2027, aligning with Volantis' plans for product shipping. This initiative is part of a broader European push in photonics, with the PIXEurope program allocating €380 million across 20 members in 11 countries.
A Diverse Photonic Landscape
While Europe focuses on indium phosphide and materials like thin-film lithium niobate and silicon nitride, other regions are exploring different approaches. Swiss startup Lightmatter and Ayar Labs from the US have raised substantial funds, emphasizing the competitive landscape in photonic chip development.
The Race Against Time
The choice of material is crucial as indium phosphide wafer prices surged by approximately 250% by June. IQE's CEO highlighted access to these materials as a significant risk for the semiconductor industry. Volantis' decision to sidestep indium phosphide constraints positions them in a competitive light, especially with Europe's industrial backing.
Founders and Funding
Volantis was founded by Tapa Ghosh, a Thiel fellow and former Y Combinator founder, and Roy Meade, who previously led high-bandwidth memory programs at Micron. The Series A funding round involved investors like Lachy Groom, Abstract Ventures, John Doerr, VXI Capital, Triatomic, and Susa Ventures.
Future Outlook
Volantis aims to deliver AI models exceeding 20 trillion parameters with up to 10,000 tokens per second per user. The company's A-1 system is poised to make a significant impact in the field of artificial intelligence inference.