All the fundraising deals in the semiconductor industry (from Q2 2025 to Q2 2026)
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Semiconductor startups announced 101 qualifying funding rounds from Q2 2025 through Q2 2026.
These semiconductor industry deals raised approximately $10.30 billion in total.
AI processors, optical interconnects and other compute chips captured about 90% of the capital.
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Insights
- The semiconductor industry raised about $10.30 billion across 101 deals, but ten rounds alone captured $5.75 billion, or almost 56% of all funding.
- Q1 2026 was the strongest quarter, with $4.07 billion raised across 22 semiconductor funding deals.
- Q2 2025 recorded the lowest funding total, but its 19 deals show that early-stage semiconductor activity remained broad.
- Funding fell by 81.5% between Q1 2026 and Q2 2026, mainly because Q2 2026 had no round above $225 million.
- Q2 2026 still raised 49.8% more than Q2 2025, despite having fewer than half as many semiconductor funding deals.
- Logic, AI compute and interconnect companies raised about $9.26 billion, equal to nearly 90% of all semiconductor industry funding.
- Cerebras Systems alone raised $2.10 billion across two rounds, more than the combined total of many smaller semiconductor categories.
- Photonics companies attracted funding in every quarter, showing that optical data movement is becoming a commercial semiconductor market.
- Power semiconductor companies completed 13 deals, but most rounds remained below the valuations reached by AI compute platforms.
- The top three rounds represented 27.7% of total semiconductor funding, which highlights the strong influence of a small number of large financings.
- Only one qualifying round was below $2 million, while 38 rounds were above $50 million.
This market map, featured in our semiconductor industry deck, highlights top companies and startups in the semiconductor industry
Summary table of the funding deals in the semiconductor industry (last 5 quarters)
We define the semiconductor market as the set of companies whose primary revenue comes from selling semiconductor devices or semiconductor wafer manufacturing services.
We include integrated device manufacturers, fabless semiconductor vendors, memory suppliers, and foundries that provide wafer-fabrication services.
We exclude semiconductor equipment and materials suppliers, EDA and semiconductor IP vendors, packaging and testing specialists, distributors, electronics manufacturing services, and end-product manufacturers.
You can also read our detailed analysis to understand how funding activity in the semiconductor industry has evolved over the last few years.
Also, you should know that we have a dedicated page, updated weekly, with all the latest fundraising deals in the semiconductor industry.
| Name | What they do | Amount in $ | Quarter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tokyo Artisan Intelligence | Develops edge AI accelerator chips in Japan. | $7.7M | Q2 2025 |
| Aethero | Develops radiation-tolerant AI processors for spacecraft. | $8.4M | Q2 2025 |
| Volantis | Develops laser-based photonic processors for computing. | $9.0M | Q2 2025 |
| EFFECT Photonics | Produces photonic chips for coherent optical networks. | $24.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Snowcap Compute | Develops superconducting processors for AI and high-performance computing. | $23.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Speedata | Produces processors for database analytics and AI workloads. | $44.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Eyeo | Develops color-splitting technology for image sensors. | $17.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Glass Imaging | Develops imaging processors for higher-quality smartphone cameras. | $20.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Panmnesia | Produces CXL chips for memory expansion and management. | $30.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Heron Power | Develops solid-state power-conversion semiconductor modules. | $38.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Avicena | Produces microLED chiplets for high-speed optical interconnects. | $65.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Neuranics | Develops magnetic sensor chips for health and industrial devices. | $8.0M | Q2 2025 |
| nEye Systems | Develops wafer-scale optical switching chips for AI clusters. | $58.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Finwave Semiconductor | Produces GaN radio-frequency switches and power amplifiers. | $8.2M | Q2 2025 |
| IceMOS Technology | Manufactures silicon power devices and MEMS products. | $22.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Lumai | Develops optical processors for large language model inference. | $10.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Blumind | Develops analog AI chips for efficient inference. | $14.1M | Q2 2025 |
| VSORA | Produces AI inference and signal-processing chips. | $46.0M | Q2 2025 |
| AttoTude | Develops high-speed chip interconnects for AI data centers. | $50.0M | Q2 2025 |
| Nanopower Semiconductor | Produces ultra-low-power power-management chips for battery devices. | $11.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Ettifos | Produces vehicle-to-everything communication chipsets. | $11.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Mueon | Develops processor and networking chips for data centers. | $15.5M | Q3 2025 |
| Omni Design Technologies | Develops analog, mixed-signal and data-converter chips. | $35.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Scintil Photonics | Produces silicon-photonic light engines with integrated lasers. | $58.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Morse Micro | Produces Wi-Fi HaLow chips for connected devices. | $59.0M | Q3 2025 |
| SiMa.ai | Produces machine-learning chips for physical AI systems. | $85.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Empower Semiconductor | Produces voltage regulators and capacitors for AI processors. | $140.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Rebellions | Develops AI inference accelerator chips in South Korea. | $250.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Groq | Produces processors for fast and predictable AI inference. | $750.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Cerebras Systems | Produces wafer-scale processors for AI computing. | $1,100.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Opticore | Develops optical processors for high-performance computing. | $7.5M | Q3 2025 |
| EDGX | Develops dedicated chips for edge AI applications. | $2.7M | Q3 2025 |
| Paragraf | Manufactures graphene-based magnetic and electronic sensors. | $55.0M | Q3 2025 |
| NeoLogic | Develops CMOS-based processors for data-center servers. | $10.0M | Q3 2025 |
| OpenLight | Develops customizable photonic chips with integrated lasers. | $34.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Celera Semiconductor | Develops custom analog chips using reusable design libraries. | $20.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Lumotive | Produces programmable optical chips for sensing and switching. | $14.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Cambridge Terahertz | Develops terahertz chips for imaging and sensing. | $12.0M | Q3 2025 |
| SiPearl | Develops European processors for AI and supercomputing. | $37.6M | Q3 2025 |
| Arago | Develops photonic accelerator chips for efficient AI computing. | $26.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Teramount | Develops fiber-to-chip connectivity products for optical systems. | $50.0M | Q3 2025 |
| Q.ANT | Develops photonic processors using lithium-niobate technology. | $71.8M | Q3 2025 |
| Positron AI | Produces memory-rich accelerator chips for AI inference. | $51.6M | Q3 2025 |
| FuriosaAI | Produces AI inference accelerator chips in South Korea. | $125.0M | Q3 2025 |
| LightSpeed Photonics | Develops optical chips for high-speed data movement. | $6.5M | Q4 2025 |
| PINC Technologies | Develops photonic components for optical systems. | $6.8M | Q4 2025 |
| PicoJool | Develops photonic chips for optical connectivity. | $12.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Enlightra | Develops frequency-comb chips for optical systems. | $15.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Lucidean | Develops optical chips for high-speed connectivity. | $18.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Axiado | Produces secure control processors for AI infrastructure. | $100.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Mythic | Produces analog compute-in-memory chips for AI inference. | $125.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Unconventional AI | Develops analog AI chips alongside algorithms and software. | $475.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Sophrosyne Technologies | Develops semiconductor sensors for connected electronic devices. | $2.0M | Q4 2025 |
| SPhotonix | Develops photonic memory and optical-storage devices. | $4.5M | Q4 2025 |
| Skycore Semiconductors | Develops switched-capacitor power-management chips. | $5.8M | Q4 2025 |
| RAAAM Memory Technologies | Develops gain-cell memory designed to replace SRAM. | $17.5M | Q4 2025 |
| NcodiN | Develops optical interposers and integrated nanolasers. | $18.4M | Q4 2025 |
| NanoXplore | Produces radiation-hardened processors and programmable chips. | $23.4M | Q4 2025 |
| PowerLattice | Develops power-delivery chiplets for AI processors. | $25.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Ferroelectric Memory Company | Develops nonvolatile memory using hafnium-oxide technology. | $116.4M | Q4 2025 |
| Majestic Labs | Develops AI accelerators and memory-interface chips. | $100.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Celero Communications | Develops coherent signal-processing chips for optical networks. | $140.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Teradar | Develops terahertz vision sensors for vehicles. | $150.0M | Q4 2025 |
| d-Matrix | Produces in-memory-compute chips for generative AI inference. | $275.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Cephia | Develops semiconductor sensor devices. | $4.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Morphing Machines | Develops runtime-reconfigurable many-core processors in India. | $4.3M | Q4 2025 |
| Magics Technologies | Produces radiation-hardened chips for extreme environments. | $4.6M | Q4 2025 |
| Vertical Semiconductor | Develops vertical gallium-nitride power transistors. | $11.0M | Q4 2025 |
| VisIC Technologies | Produces gallium-nitride power devices for electric vehicles. | $26.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Movandi | Produces radio-frequency and beamforming chipsets. | $40.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Tachyum | Develops processors for AI, cloud and supercomputing. | $220.0M | Q4 2025 |
| Cerebras Systems | Produces wafer-scale processors for AI computing. | $1,000.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Ayar Labs | Produces optical input-output chiplets for AI processors. | $500.0M | Q1 2026 |
| MatX | Develops accelerator chips designed for transformer models. | $500.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Etched | Develops chips dedicated to transformer inference. | $500.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Rebellions | Develops AI inference accelerator chips in South Korea. | $400.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Axelera AI | Produces AI accelerators for edge and data-center inference. | $250.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Positron AI | Produces memory-rich accelerator chips for AI inference. | $230.0M | Q1 2026 |
| OLIX | Develops photonic AI processors that reduce memory dependence. | $220.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Neurophos | Develops optical processors using metamaterial technology. | $110.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Equal1 | Produces silicon quantum-processing chips in Ireland. | $60.0M | Q1 2026 |
| BOSS Semiconductor | Develops processors for vehicles and robotics. | $60.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Efficient Computer | Produces ultra-low-power processors for embedded systems. | $60.0M | Q1 2026 |
| MetaSilicon | Develops configurable chips for wireless baseband processing. | $41.7M | Q1 2026 |
| Xscape Photonics | Develops programmable photonic chips for AI networks. | $37.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Amber Semiconductor | Develops vertical power-delivery chips for AI processors. | $30.0M | Q1 2026 |
| C2i Semiconductors | Develops voltage-regulator chips for data centers. | $15.0M | Q1 2026 |
| SINNOV | Develops semiconductor sensors for industrial systems. | $14.0M | Q1 2026 |
| SPARK Microsystems | Produces ultra-low-power wireless transceiver chips. | $12.5M | Q1 2026 |
| Chiral | Develops nanomaterial-based semiconductor devices. | $12.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Vervesemi Microelectronics | Develops analog and mixed-signal chips in India. | $10.0M | Q1 2026 |
| Aheesa Digital Innovations | Develops RISC-V networking processors for telecom equipment. | $2.4M | Q1 2026 |
| optoML | Develops analog AI processors with optical interconnects. | $1.8M | Q1 2026 |
| Kandou AI | Produces low-power connectivity and chiplet-interface chips. | $225.0M | Q2 2026 |
| Fractile | Develops accelerator chips for AI inference. | $220.0M | Q2 2026 |
| XCENA | Develops computational-memory chips for AI workloads. | $135.0M | Q2 2026 |
| Reed Semiconductor | Develops semiconductor power controllers for electronic systems. | $100.0M | Q2 2026 |
| OpenLight | Develops customizable photonic chips with integrated lasers. | $50.0M | Q2 2026 |
| HrdWyr | Develops AI processors for edge and industrial systems. | $13.0M | Q2 2026 |
| BigEndian Semiconductors | Develops secure edge AI and vision processors. | $6.0M | Q2 2026 |
| Mosaic SoC | Develops low-power perception chips for connected devices. | $3.8M | Q2 2026 |
In our semiconductor industry deck, we identify pain points entrepreneurs should prioritize
How has funding activity in the semiconductor industry changed over time?
Q1 2026 was the most active quarter, mainly because Cerebras Systems raised $1.00 billion and three other companies raised $500 million each.
Q2 2025 was the least active quarter because the semiconductor industry recorded no round above $65 million.
Semiconductor funding fell by 81.5% from Q1 2026 to Q2 2026, but Q2 2026 still raised 49.8% more than Q2 2025.
Large rounds strongly changed the quarterly totals. After removing the two largest deals from each quarter, Q1 2026 remains the strongest quarter, while Q2 2026 becomes much closer to Q2 2025.
| Quarter | Number of deals | Total raised ($) | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 2025 | 19 | $502.4M | Activity was broad, but no semiconductor funding round exceeded $65 million. |
| Q3 2025 | 25 | $3.03B | Cerebras Systems and Groq generated most of the sharp quarterly increase. |
| Q4 2025 | 27 | $1.95B | The quarter had the highest deal count and several large AI chip rounds. |
| Q1 2026 | 22 | $4.07B | Four rounds of at least $500 million pushed semiconductor funding to a record level. |
| Q2 2026 | 8 | $752.8M | Deal count fell sharply, but four rounds still reached at least $100 million. |
| All quarters | 101 | $10.30B | AI compute and interconnect companies captured most semiconductor industry funding. |
This chart, featured in our semiconductor industry deck, looks at TSMC’s strategy in semiconductors
Which startups in the semiconductor industry raised the largest rounds over the last months?
These startups raised the most recently in the semiconductor industry:
- Cerebras Systems raised $1.10 billion to expand wafer-scale chip manufacturing, AI computing capacity and international customer deployments.
- Cerebras Systems raised another $1.00 billion to finance further manufacturing, infrastructure and customer growth.
- Groq raised $750 million because producing inference chips and building data-center capacity require substantial upfront investment.
- Ayar Labs raised $500 million to move optical input-output chiplets into high-volume production and major computing platforms.
- MatX raised $500 million to develop transformer-focused silicon, fund manufacturing and expand its engineering team.
- Etched raised $500 million to manufacture transformer-specific chips and build complete inference systems.
- Unconventional AI raised $475 million at seed stage because the company is building new analog chips, laboratories and a large technical team.
- Rebellions raised $400 million to expand AI chip production, develop new products and enter more international markets.
- d-Matrix raised $275 million to scale production and deploy its in-memory AI inference chips with customers.
- Rebellions raised $250 million to support accelerator development and increase manufacturing capacity.
And, yes, we do cover most of them in our our beautiful pitch about the semiconductor industry.
You may also want to check our ranking of the most funded startups in the semiconductor industry as well as our list of the most valued startups.
This chart, featured in our semiconductor industry deck, shows annual funding in semiconductor startups
Is the semiconductor industry shifting toward smaller or bigger deals?
The average semiconductor funding round was about $102.0 million across the five quarters.
The quarterly average ranged from $26.4 million in Q2 2025 to $184.8 million in Q1 2026. The increase came mainly from large AI processor and optical-interconnect financings.
Without the largest rounds, the semiconductor industry would show a steadier funding pattern, with most companies raising smaller amounts for development, tape-outs and production.
| Quarter | Number of deals | Average deal size | Deals below $2M | Deals above $50M |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 2025 | 19 | $26.4M | 0 | 2 |
| Q3 2025 | 25 | $121.3M | 0 | 11 |
| Q4 2025 | 27 | $72.1M | 0 | 9 |
| Q1 2026 | 22 | $184.8M | 1 | 12 |
| Q2 2026 | 8 | $94.1M | 0 | 4 |
| All quarters | 101 | $102.0M | 1 | 38 |
This chart, featured in our semiconductor industry deck, compares the main business model options for fabless semiconductor companies
How concentrated was funding activity in the semiconductor industry?
Semiconductor funding was highly concentrated because the largest round represented between 12.9% and 36.3% of quarterly capital. The top three rounds regularly captured about half or more of each quarter.
This concentration was especially visible in Q3 2025, when Cerebras Systems, Groq and Rebellions represented 69.3% of all semiconductor industry funding.
| Quarter | Number of deals | % by Top 1 | % by Top 3 | % by Top 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Q2 2025 | 19 | 12.9% | 34.4% | 79.6% |
| Q3 2025 | 25 | 36.3% | 69.3% | 88.9% |
| Q4 2025 | 27 | 24.4% | 49.8% | 89.5% |
| Q1 2026 | 22 | 24.6% | 49.2% | 92.7% |
| Q2 2026 | 8 | 29.9% | 77.0% | 100.0% |
| All quarters | 101 | 10.7% | 27.7% | 55.8% |
This chart, featured in our semiconductor industry deck, shows the revenue mix across customer segments in the semiconductor industry
Which categories in the semiconductor industry received the most funding?
Logic, AI compute and interconnect companies raised about $9.26 billion, or nearly 90% of all semiconductor industry funding. Investors financed the chips and connectivity needed to run larger AI models.
Power semiconductor companies raised about $432 million across 13 deals. These companies support energy delivery, but most power-chip rounds remained smaller than AI processor rounds.
Memory semiconductor companies raised about $303 million across five deals. The category benefited from growing demand for faster and more efficient movement of AI data.
| Category name | Number of deals | Total raised | Startups and amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| Logic, AI compute and interconnect | 69 | ≈$9.26B | Cerebras Systems $2.10B; Groq $750M; Rebellions $650M; MatX $500M; Etched $500M; Unconventional AI $475M; d-Matrix $275M; Ayar Labs $500M; Positron AI $281.6M; Fractile $220M; and other semiconductor startups. |
| Power semiconductors | 13 | ≈$432M | Empower Semiconductor $140M; Reed Semiconductor $100M; Heron Power $38M; Amber Semiconductor $30M; PowerLattice $25M; VisIC Technologies $26M; IceMOS Technology $22M; and other power-chip companies. |
| Memory semiconductors | 5 | ≈$303M | XCENA $135M; Ferroelectric Memory Company $116.4M; Panmnesia $30M; RAAAM Memory Technologies $17.5M; SPhotonix $4.5M. |
This chart, featured in our semiconductor industry deck, shows how advanced foundry node manufacturing technology has evolved over time
Who are the biggest investors in the semiconductor industry?
NVIDIA and NVentures appeared in at least four disclosed semiconductor deals, including Ayar Labs, d-Matrix and Positron AI, because the investments support the wider AI computing ecosystem.
Samsung-related investment entities appeared in at least three deals, including Rebellions and other semiconductor or memory companies with strategic links to Samsung's technology platforms.
Arm appeared in at least two processor financings, including Rebellions, where new AI chips can increase demand for Arm-based computing technology.
AMD and AMD Ventures appeared in at least two optical-interconnect and AI semiconductor deals that could support faster data-center systems.
IAN Alpha Fund backed Morphing Machines and BigEndian Semiconductors, two Indian companies developing locally designed processor products.
IvyCap Ventures also invested in Morphing Machines and BigEndian Semiconductors, giving IvyCap Ventures two confirmed Indian semiconductor deals.
Maverick Silicon appeared in at least two analog semiconductor investments, including Celera Semiconductor.
Playground Global appeared in at least two deep-technology semiconductor investments, including Vertical Semiconductor.
Qatar Investment Authority appeared in at least two AI semiconductor financings, including the $275 million d-Matrix round.
Triatomic Capital appeared in at least two AI compute investments, including d-Matrix.
Disclaimer: this investor list may be incomplete; we focus on publicly disclosed lead and prominent recurring investors, so some frequent minority participants may be underrepresented. “Total funded” does not represent the amount personally invested by an individual investor. Instead, it refers to the aggregate amount raised across all fundraising rounds in which the investor participated.
| Investor | Number of deals | Total funded | Startups |
|---|---|---|---|
| NVIDIA / NVentures | ≥4 | ≥$1.06B | Ayar Labs, d-Matrix, Positron AI and related AI-chip rounds |
| Samsung-related investment entities | ≥3 | ≥$650M | Rebellions and other semiconductor or memory-chip companies |
| Arm | ≥2 | ≥$650M | Rebellions and related processor companies |
| AMD / AMD Ventures | ≥2 | Not fully disclosed | Optical-interconnect and AI-chip companies |
| IAN Alpha Fund | 2 | $10.3M | Morphing Machines and BigEndian Semiconductors |
| IvyCap Ventures | 2 | $10.3M | Morphing Machines and BigEndian Semiconductors |
| Maverick Silicon | ≥2 | Not fully disclosed | Celera Semiconductor and related analog-chip companies |
| Playground Global | ≥2 | Not fully disclosed | Vertical Semiconductor and related deep-technology companies |
| Qatar Investment Authority | ≥2 | ≥$275M | d-Matrix and related AI semiconductor companies |
| Triatomic Capital | ≥2 | ≥$275M | d-Matrix and related AI compute companies |
This chart, featured in our semiconductor industry deck, shows how advanced node demand has driven growth in the semiconductor industry over time
Related blog posts
- All funding deals in the semiconductor industry
- Which companies have raised the most funding in the semiconductor industry?
- How strong is fundraising in the semiconductor industry right now?
