Paris-based deep-tech startup NcodiN, which develops optical interposer technology with integrated nanolasers for AI applications, announced that it has secured €16 million (US$18.4 million) in an oversubscribed seed financing round. “This funding marks a pivotal milestone for NcodiN,” said cofounder and CEO Francesco Manegatti in a press release. “We are delivering the missing piece for the industry’s most pressing challenge: enabling extremely high memory bandwidth to power the AI factories of tomorrow.”

Faster, more efficient AI

NcodiN’s core technology is NConnect, a “new generation” of photonic interposers designed to “overcome the copper wall,” according to the company, referring to the performance and energy constraints of electrical interconnects that restrict AI systems. At the heart of NConnect is what NCodiN describes as “the world’s smallest laser on silicon”—500 times smaller than the industry standard, according to the firm. The company says that its proof-of-concept device offers an efficiency of <0.1 pJ/bit and ultra-dense integration (>10,000 devices/mm²). The optical network-on-chip comes in a plug-and-play format that can integrate with existing processors and chiplet architectures.

“Our technology unlocks wafer-scale superchips by providing the most energy-efficient interconnects for networking across tens of chiplets,” said Manegatti. “As new generations of GPUs and AI accelerators emerge to keep pace with rapidly evolving GenAI algorithms, NcodiN is laying the photonic foundation that makes them possible.”

Looking to the future

The new equity round was led by MIG Capital, USA, with participation from Maverick Silicon, USA; PhotonVentures, Netherlands; and Verve Ventures, Switzerland. It also includes continued support from existing backers Elaia, France; Earlybird, Germany; and OVNI, France.

“NcodiN is working at the center of the AI infrastructure market, a sector experiencing rapid, significant growth driven by the surging demand for generative AI, the proliferation of big data, advancements in specialized hardware like GPUs, and the widespread adoption of cloud computing,” said Oliver Kahl, MIG Capital. “The company’s ambitious team is shaping and empowering the future of computing to drive innovation across multiple industries.”

The company expects to use the funds to transition from R&D to an industrial scale—furthering product development, making key engineering hires to support the industrialization of its technology in a CMOS pilot line on 300-mm wafers, and building out its supply chain and customer partnerships. NcodiN also plans to establish a Silicon Valley presence, expand its R&D capacity and scale its team in preparation for large-scale manufacturing partnerships. This fundraising, states the firm, “will accelerate industrialization of the platform, including an industrial pilot to demonstrate compatibility with advanced packaging techniques.”