UK-backed AI chip startup Fractile has reached a $7 billion valuation after a new funding round, marking a major breakthrough for the company as demand for advanced AI computing technology is continually developing.
The London and Bristol-based company is developing AI accelerators designed to optimize model execution, and the process through which AI models generate responses. The investment signals a strong vote of confidence in Britain’s efforts to build domestic AI infrastructure rather than over-relying on foreign sourcing for the computing power that underpins the technology.
In this connection, AI Minister Kanishka Narayan said in a statement, “For too long, Britain has produced some of the world’s best scientific ideas, only to see too much of the technology, industry and wealth they create built elsewhere.”
“We are determined to change that.”
Britain is home to chip designer Arm whose technology is used in billions of devices globally but its semiconductor manufacturing industry remains small compared with those located in the US and Asia.