Another startup takes on Nvidia using a clever trick: Celestial AI brings together DDR5 and HBM to reduce power consumption by 90%, may already be working with AMD
There is no shortage of startups pushing technology that could one day be critical in AI computing and memory infrastructure.
Celestial AI, which recently secured $175 million in Series C funding, is looking to commercialize its Photonic Fabric technology, which aims to redefine optical interconnects.
Celestial AI’s foundational technology is designed to separate AI computing from memory, delivering a “transformative leap in AI system performance that is a decade more advanced than existing technologies.”
Lower energy overhead and latency
The company has reportedly been in discussions with several hyperscale customers and a major processor manufacturer about integrating its technology. While specific details remain under wraps, it’s highly likely that manufacturer is AMD, as AMD Ventures is one of Photonic Fabric’s backers.
As reported by The next platformThe core of Celestial AI’s strategy lies in chiplets, interposers and optical interconnect technology. By combining DDR5 and HBM memory, the company aims to significantly reduce power consumption while maintaining high performance levels. The chiplets can be used for additional memory capacity or as connections between chips, providing speeds comparable to NVLink or Infinity Fabric.
“The surge in demand for our Photonic Fabric is the result of having the right technology, the right team and the right customer engagement model,” said Dave Lazovsky, co-founder and CEO of Celestial AI.
“We are experiencing broad customer acceptance as a result of our full-stack technology offering, which provides electrical-optical-electrical connections that deliver data with the required bandwidth, latency, bit error rate (BER) and power, compatible with the systems’ logical protocols from our clients. AI accelerators and GPUs. In-depth strategic collaborations with hyperscale data center customers aimed at optimizing Accelerated Computing architectures at the system level are a prerequisite for these solutions. We are excited to partner with the giants of our industry to drive the commercialization of the Photonic Fabric.”
While Celestial AI faces timing challenges and competition from other silicon photonics startups, the potential impact of its technology on the AI processing landscape makes it a promising competitor. As the industry moves toward co-packaged optics and silicon photonic interposers, Celestial AI’s Photonic Fabric could play a key role in shaping the future of AI computing.