Startup raises $8.5 million for the production of chips on a glass substrate, considers NATO as an investor

What just happened? Startup Ephos is betting on glass photonic chips – a new technology that could change the shape of the entire semiconductor industry. The company recently announced an $8.5 million seed funding round and the launch of a large research and manufacturing facility in Milan, Italy.

The large seed round was led by deep tech investor Starlight Ventures, with participation from Collaborative Fund, 2100 Ventures and business angels who have previously worked with tech giants such as Airbnb and Amazon. Ephos has also secured over $450,000 in non-dilutive funding from the European Innovation Council and, surprisingly, from NATO’s defense accelerator, DIANA.

Ephos aims to set a precedent by moving away from traditional silicon semiconductor manufacturing to glass substrates for photonic integrated circuits. Highlighted benefits include significant increases in performance and efficiency in applications such as quantum computing, artificial intelligence, data centers and communications.

However, the most significant benefit is that glass enables processing and communication on the same chip, overcoming limitations in current solutions. The company is also emphasizing improved signal transmission compared to silicon, which it believes is necessary to build large-scale quantum computers.

Ephos’ newly opened 53,000-square-foot facility in Milan will serve as the company’s central manufacturing and research and development center. The expansion marks an important step as the startup accelerates efforts to commercialize glass photonic chips and forges partnerships among sectors eager for efficiency and performance gains.

For AI applications, Goldman Sachs predicts that energy consumption in data centers will increase by 160 percent by 2030 as the AI ​​boom continues. Ephos believes its energy-efficient chips can help solve this challenge.

While still a small player, Ephos holds a strategic position in both commercial markets and the defense/aerospace sectors, highlighting the geopolitical advantage of its chips. The company argues that its technology strengthens the quantum capabilities of allied countries, supported by a US/EU-based supply chain.

“Securing this financing and opening our facility in Milan is a key milestone for Ephos. Our glass photonic chips will transform not only quantum computing and artificial intelligence, but also the broader computing infrastructure of the future,” said Andrea Rocchetto, CEO and founding co-owner at Efos.

“By solving energy inefficiency and increasing efficiency across industries, from data centers to secure communications, we are laying the foundation for the next generation of computing technology.”

However, Ephos is not the only competitor in the race to replace silicon with glass substrates. The startup faces stiff competition from industry giants such as Intel, Samsung and SK Hynix, which are investing billions in advanced silicon solutions. At the same time, a large coalition emerging from Taiwan aims to remove bottlenecks in the production of glass substrates. How this story will play out remains to be seen.