Goldman Sachs–backed AI research startup AlphaSense valued at $2.5B, gears up for and IPO as it crosses $200M in annual recurring revenue
AlphaSense is preparing to go public as they cross $200M in annual recurring revenue
Established in San Francisco by Jack Kokko and Raj Neervannan, AlphaSense boasts an enviable clientele. The majority of their 4,000+ corporate clients feature among the S&P 500 businesses, paying between $10,000 and $20,000 annually per seat for services such as competitive analysis and regulatory clearance monitoring.
Through adept use of AI and machine learning, AlphaSense manages to process and extract valuable data from vast amounts of public documents. For example, SEC filings, speeches, and research papers. This unique ability to turn complex legal and financial jargon into understandable insights caught the attention of high-profile figures like Cynthia Paul, a hedge fund manager.
Hedge fund manager Cynthia Paul started using the research platform AlphaSense more than 10 years ago while she was working at George Soros’s family office.
She had enlisted all the analysts on her team to track down a data point—and one of them came back so quickly, showing her an answer on his computer screen, that she almost didn’t believe him. The analyst had found the figure via AlphaSense’s AI-powered search engine, which uses machine learning to pull from a dataset of public documents and SEC filings, transcripts, and research.
“I was impressed enough to try the product myself,” says Paul, who would soon ask AlphaSense if Soros Fund Management could invest in the firm, and would later back the company again when she launched her own hedge fund. Research startup AlphaSense now boasts more than 4,000 corporate customers, including 80% of the S&P 100, who typically pay between $10,000 or $20,000 annually per seat to follow their competitors, track regulatory approvals, or research M&A targets.
With the help of developments in generative AI, AlphaSense CEO Jack Kokko says he is seeing heightened interest in the platform—both from its users, and its swath of investors, ranging from Goldman Sachs, CapitalG, and Viking Global. AlphaSense hit $200 million in annual recurring revenue at the end of last year—doubling its ARR from summer 2022—and Kokko is now thinking about how to double that figure, while setting his sights on the right time to take the company public. “We’re suddenly a lot closer to that,” Kokko tells Fortune in an interview.
AlphaSense has increased its headcount by 20% since January 2023 and opened an office in Singapore. This month, AlphaSense hired a new chief marketing officer, Heather Zynczak—who was part of the executive team that took software company Pluralsight public—as it tries to lay the groundwork for an IPO.
“There’s still a lot to do, of course, when you actually decide to go and file,” Kokko says.
‘The poster child’
Twenty-five years ago—during the roaring dotcom boom—Kokko was working as an investment banking analyst for Morgan Stanley. He remembers the feeling of being a young analyst and walking into a client boardroom, his mind running over what data point he might have missed in his research—what overlooked item might end up “messing up that billion-dollar deal,” he says.
“That’s what stuck with me,” Kokko says, and what would ultimately lead him and his Wharton School classmate, Raj Neervannan, to start working on a search engine that could marry the burgeoning technology of artificial intelligence with research about companies.
The key to the AlphaSense platform, which Kokko and Neervannan started building in 2011, would be its dataset. AlphaSense’s models pull from SEC filings, equity analyst research, industry journals, patent filings, earnings call transcripts, and other public documents and sources. Its two acquisitions over the years—financial analysis company Sentieo as well as expert interview transcription service Stream by Mosaic—have helped expand that dataset. Users can search for things like layoff events or patents, and AlphaSense’s AI models will spit out the relevant documents.
Kokko ascribes the recent growth at his company, in part, to generative AI. Over the past couple of years, AlphaSense has incorporated a variety of large language models, including Anthropic’s recently released Claude 3, into its own in-house AI systems, which it fine-tunes with open-source models like Llama 2 and Mistral, to power new features. Where previously AlphaSense would categorize information and surface data points, now AlphaSense can help users connect the dots—summarizing information, offering industrywide analysis on what companies are saying about things like price inflation, or suggesting specific companies or competitors in sectors a user is researching.
“We’re constantly pushing what we’re able to automate for users and make them more effective at their work, and generative AI has been one of those things that really enabled big leaps in that,” Kokko says. “That has created a lot of demand—extra demand, perhaps—and a lot of attention to the use cases that we serve.”
That, plus the company’s focus on expansion into new markets like Singapore, were major contributors to AlphaSense doubling its ARR and helped attract attention from new investors. Last calendar year, amid a drought in venture capital funding to startups in sectors outside of AI, AlphaSense raised approximately $250 million in equity funding over two separate funding rounds. One of those rounds was in September, when the company raised $150 million at a $2.5 billion valuation in a deal led by BOND Capital and joined by previous investors CapitalG (one of Alphabet’s independent investing arms) and Goldman Sachs.
Darren Cohen, the CIO of Goldman Sachs’ growth equity team, sees AlphaSense as the perfect fit for their broader investment thesis: combining the infrastructure layer of AI (large language models built by companies like OpenAI or Anthropic) with a rich dataset and a specific workflow. “AlphaSense is, by far, the poster child,” Cohen tells Fortune. “It’s one of the largest positions in our fund.”
But AlphaSense still has a bit of work to do before it goes public. For one: diversifying its leadership team. There is only one woman—its new CMO—across AlphaSense’s eight-person executive team and five-person board of directors.
AlphaSense says it is currently interviewing female board candidates, and Goldman’s Cohen told Fortune that diversifying both the leadership team and board is one “of many things” AlphaSense is focused on pre-IPO. “We actually are in conversations and showing them potential candidates, some of [whom] I work closely with, which would be amazing additions. Stay tuned,” Cohen said.
The company is also updating its financial systems to handle the precise reporting necessary in the public markets and to ensure that investors can adequately compare it to other public SaaS companies, Kokko says. He anticipates that CMO Zynczak’s experience on public and private boards, in particular, will be able to guide AlphaSense on what pre- and post-IPO investors look for.
Of course, it remains to be seen exactly when the IPO markets will be deemed “open” again. While a few notable startups like Instacart and Reddit have made their debuts in recent months, listings overall have been few and far between.
Kokko won’t share an exact timeline for AlphaSense’s public listing other than to say it will depend on when the IPO market appears truly open. And given that the company raised some $250 million in equity funding just last year, Kokko says he has the capital to wait: “We’re not in a rush.”
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
Apptronik and Mercedes-Benz partner to pilot Apptronik's Apollo humanoid robot in Mercedes-Benz manufacturing facilities
Apptronik, a leader in next-generation general-purpose humanoid robots designed to change the way we live and work, today announced that it has entered into an agreement with Mercedes-Benz. As part of the agreement, Apptronik and Mercedes-Benz will collaborate on identifying applications for highly advanced robotics in Mercedes-Benz Manufacturing.
Mercedes-Benz is committed to empowering its staff with state-of-the-art technology that supports its commitment to excellence, and with Apollo, Mercedes-Benz brings one of the world's most advanced commercial humanoid robots into its manufacturing facilities. Mercedes-Benz is exploring potential use cases for Apollo humanoid robots in logistics to bring parts to the production line for workers to assemble, the so-called delivery of assembly kits, while simultaneously inspecting the components. Apollo will also be used to deliver the totes of kitted parts later in the manufacturing process.
The addition of humanoid robots to factories and plants would allow organizations like Mercedes-Benz to deploy robotics that are optimized to perform in spaces that are designed for humans, thus avoiding full-scale facility redesigns that are built around robots rather than people. In short, this approach centers on automating some physically demanding, repetitive and dull tasks for which it is increasingly hard to find reliable workers.
"When we set out to build Apollo, an agreement like the one we're announcing today with Mercedes-Benz was a dream scenario," said Jeff Cardenas, co-founder & CEO of Apollo. "Mercedes plans to use robotics and Apollo for automating some low skill, physically challenging, manual labor – a model use case which we'll see other organizations replicate in the months and years to come."
Apollo, which has a form factor that roughly matches the size of a human worker (5 foot 8 inches tall and 160 pounds in weight with the ability to lift 55 pounds), is built to operate in industrial spaces alongside people. Combined with a unique force control architecture that maintains safe operation around people (similar to a collaborative robot versus a traditional industrial robot), Apollo's friendly design allows it to work alongside people while simultaneously taking on the physically demanding tasks.
Additionally, Apollo's computing power makes it possible for leading AI companies to solve use cases outside the ones that Apptronik will initially solve, similar to the iPhone concept: world-class, user-friendly hardware that comes with some pre-built applications and can add applications developed by third parties.
"To build the most desirable cars we continually evolve the future of automotive production: Advancements in robotics and AI open up new opportunities also for us. We are exploring new possibilities with the use of robotics to support our skilled workforce in manufacturing. This is a new frontier and we want to understand the potential both for robotics and automotive manufacturing to fill labor gaps in areas such as low skill, repetitive and physically demanding work and to free up our highly skilled team members on the line to build the world's most desirable cars," said Jörg Burzer, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes-Benz Group AG, Production, Quality & Supply Chain Management.
About Apptronik
Apptronik is the leader in next-generation general purpose robots designed to change the way we live and work. Apollo, a humanoid robot built to work alongside people in environments designed for people, culminated from the design and development of over 10 general purpose robots including extensive work on NASA Valkyrie. The company was founded in 2016 out of the Human Centered Robotics Lab at the University of Texas at Austin, with a mission to leverage innovative technology for the betterment of society. Apptronik's goal is to introduce the next generation of robots that will change the way people live and work, while tackling some of our world's largest challenges. To learn more about Apptronik, please visit https://apptronik.com.
Contact:
apptronik@missionnorth.com
Citi Ventures Backs Capstack, the first integrated Bank-to-Bank Loan Marketplace to mitigate asset concentration risk and increase profitability
Secures Strategic Investment, Forms Elite Advisory Board, and Welcomes Top Banking Executives in a Significant Market Move
CapStack, a startup formed by Pipe co-founder Michal Cieplinski, has raised $6 million toward its effort to build an integrated operating system for banks.
In simpler terms, Cieplinski described CapStack as the “first bank-to-bank marketplace,” giving the institutions the ability to share and have visibility into one another’s portfolios.
Capstack Technologies, the first bank-to-bank marketplace designed to mitigate asset risk, has secured a strategic investment from Citi Ventures, marking a significant milestone in its mission to revolutionize banking technology.
“As a member of the advisory board for Capstack Technologies, I am deeply impressed by the caliber of talent and expertise we have assembled to guide this groundbreaking technology”
Amidst a challenging investment climate, this funding is a testament to Capstack Technologies’ innovation following their successful $6 million fundraising last summer. This investment coincides with establishing a high-profile advisory board and adding experienced executives from community and regional banks, propelling Capstack Technologies into a new era of growth and market leadership.
Capstack Technologies is leading the way with its "first bank-to-bank marketplace," promoting transparency, collaboration, and efficiency among small and medium-sized banks. This initiative aligns with the U.S. financial sector's imperative to reduce concentration risk, as highlighted by such risks in Silicon Valley Bank and other failed banks. Notably, the U.S. was home to 4,123 community and regional banks in 2023, comprising nearly 97% of all banks and collectively overseeing assets valued at $3.4 trillion.
“Citi Ventures is committed to investing in companies that have the potential to drive our industry forward,” said Jeff Flynn, Director, Citi Ventures. “Capstack Technologies’ innovative approach could fundamentally change the way smaller banks manage risk and grow their businesses, and ultimately could create opportunities for Citi to engage differently with this sizable segment of the financial services ecosystem.”
"Securing this strategic investment from Citi Ventures, forming a distinguished advisory board, and welcoming experienced executives from community and regional banks collectively mark a pivotal moment for Capstack Technologies," stated Michal Cieplinski, CEO of Capstack Technologies. "These milestones validate our vision and accelerate our mission to revolutionize banking technology for the community.”
Formation of the Advisory Board
Capstack Technologies has formed an advisory board comprising industry veterans Trey Maust, Chairman of Lewis & Clark Bancorp, Patrick Kennedy, Executive Chairman of TransPecos Banks and Dub Sutherland of Kennedy Sutherland LLP. These advisors bring a wealth of experience in banking, law, and financial technologies, guiding Capstack Technologies’ strategic direction in the banking sector.
"As a member of the advisory board for Capstack Technologies, I am deeply impressed by the caliber of talent and expertise we have assembled to guide this groundbreaking technology," expressed Kennedy. "Having the right people involved is crucial in steering such innovative solutions. The experiences and insights our team brings are essential in shaping a technology that has the potential to redefine the banking sector.”
New Executives
Capstack Technologies is also bolstering its leadership team with David McArdle as Head of Banking Relationships and Randy Riffle as Head of Customer & Platform Operations. McArdle, with his extensive experience in banking and fintech, will focus on streamlining processes for C-suite executives in community banks. With his extensive credit and lending background, Riffle will lead the charge in transforming operational efficiencies and focusing on positive customer experiences.
“To contribute to an organization at the forefront of such a transformative movement within the banking sector is inspiring,” said Riffle. “The advent of this technology epitomizes the requirement of all bank sizes to create efficiencies in the participation and whole loan marketplace model.”
"This moment is pivotal for Capstack Technologies, as we've successfully secured strategic funding from Citi Ventures, assembled a formidable advisory board, and significantly enhanced our leadership team," concludes Cieplinski. "These steps are a clear testament to our unwavering commitment to innovation and underscore our growing significance in the current investment climate. We are not just making strides but setting new standards in the banking technology sector."
About Capstack Technologies
Capstack Technologies is building the first integrated bank-to-bank loan marketplace, enabling cooperation across banks and financial services institutions to increase profitability and mitigate risk through asset diversification. Capstack Technologies is dedicated to building a sophisticated infrastructure to redefine banking operations, enhance risk management, and deliver cutting-edge solutions for small and medium-sized banks. Capstack Technologies is backed by world-class investors, including Citi Ventures, Fin Capital, Alloy Labs, Cambrian Ventures, Cowboy Ventures, Future Perfect Ventures, Gaingels, Selah Ventures, Uncorrelated Ventures and Valor Equity Partners.
Contacts
Media Contact:
Rachel Weikum, Actual Agency
rachel.weikum@actual.agency
(503) 970-4869
The next NVIDIA will be LightMatter's next generation photonics infrastructure for artificial intelligence
The next NVIDIA will be Lightmatter with the next generation photonics infrastructure for artificial intelligence. Moving us beyond Moore's Law.
Great insights in this interview with Jason Calcanis on how LightMatter is going to power the next generation of AI, and move global computing to the power of light. Exponentially increasing computational power while reducing energy consumption.
"Over the next few years, all of the GPUs in the world that are designed for AI training and inference or high-performance computing are going to be built on Lightmatter's Passage..... AI – what an ally for high-performance computing. People are just spending unlimited money. Blank checkbook, spend whatever you need to win the AI race, and that’s a great environment for a technology like photonics and Passage". - Nicholas Harris, CEO & Founder
Lynk Global and Slam Corp NASDAQ: SLAM announce definitive business combination agreement
Associated capital raise is expected to accelerate manufacturing and secure launches as well as support satellite design and operations
Lynk Global the world’s leading satellite-direct-to-standard-phone (“sat2phone”) telecoms provider, and Slam Corp. (NASDAQ: SLAM), a special purpose acquisition company (“Slam”), today announced that they have entered into a definitive business combination agreement (the “Business Combination Agreement”) under which Slam will combine with Lynk. Upon completion, the combined company will operate as Lynk Global Holdings, Inc. and its common stock is expected to be publicly listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “LYNK”.
“Through our proposed business combination with Slam, we believe Lynk will be well-positioned to raise capital through several avenues. The capital we intend to raise will accelerate our growth as we execute our plan to launch many more ‘cell-towers-in-space’.”
Charles Miller, CEO of Lynk, said, “With technology proven on all seven continents, and 36 full commercial contracts with partners that currently provide coverage to hundreds of millions of subscribers in approximately 50 countries, Lynk has the potential to provide continuous wireless connectivity to billions of people around the world, using the unmodified phones they use today.”
Alex Rodriguez, CEO of Slam, said, “Lynk seeks to connect the world by extending cell coverage everywhere. We are thrilled to announce this business combination agreement, which positions the combined company to capitalize on the massive, $1 trillion mobile wireless market as Lynk solves a core problem for the more than five billion cell phone users around the globe today. The combined company is set to deliver Lynk’s innovative, patented technology to areas that need it most and connect the more than two billion unconnected people worldwide.”
Lynk has engaged BTIG, LLC to raise additional capital ahead of the closing of the business combination with Slam. Proceeds from the anticipated financing will be used to produce more satellites, secure launches, and support satellite design and operations. This is expected to include the continued development, manufacturing and launch of a constellation of Low-Earth Orbit satellites. The constellation will complement the three commercially-licensed Lynk satellites that are currently in orbit and is intended to enable global communications using radiofrequency spectrum licensed to mobile network operators (“MNO”) without hardware or software modification to existing standard cellphone technologies.
Charles Miller added, “Through our proposed business combination with Slam, we believe Lynk will be well-positioned to raise capital through several avenues. The capital we intend to raise will accelerate our growth as we execute our plan to launch many more ‘cell-towers-in-space’.”
Investment Highlights:
Lynk’s patented and commercially-licensed sat2phone technology is compatible with any unmodified cellular device from 2G to 5G, and is positioned to be compatible with future generations of mobile devices. The company’s technology has been tested and proven in over 25 countries, on all seven continents, and Lynk has signed 36 full commercial contracts with partners to provide coverage in approximately 50 countries.
Transaction Overview:
Under the terms of the business combination agreement, the transaction values Lynk at a pre-money enterprise value of $800 million. Upon completion of the transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement (the “Business Combination”), the expected proceeds will be used to secure launch timing and support satellite design, manufacturing and operations.
The boards of directors of Lynk and Slam have each approved the proposed Business Combination, the consummation of which is subject to various customary closing conditions, including the filing and effectiveness of a Registration Statement on Form S-4 (the “Registration Statement”) with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), and the approval of the shareholders of Lynk and Slam. Completion of the proposed Business Combination is expected in the second half of 2024.
Additional information about the proposed Business Combination, including a copy of the Business Combination Agreement, will be provided in a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed by Slam with the SEC on February 5, 2024 (the “Current Report”). Additional information about the proposed Business Combination will be described in the Registration Statement relating to the proposed Business Combination, which Slam and Lynk Global Holdings, Inc. (“Topco”), a holding company formed to complete the Business Combination, will file with the SEC.
Advisors
BTIG, LLC is serving as capital markets advisor and JonesTrading Institutional Services LLC is serving as financial advisor to Lynk Global, Inc. Goodwin Procter LLP is serving as legal counsel to Lynk Global, Inc. Kirkland & Ellis LLP is serving as legal counsel to Slam Corp. DLA Piper LLP (US) is serving as legal counsel to BTIG, LLC.
About Lynk
Lynk is a patented, proven, and commercially-licensed satellite-direct-to-standard-mobile-phone system. Today, Lynk allows commercial subscribers to send and receive text messages to and from space, via standard unmodified mobile devices. Lynk’s service has been tested and proven in over 25 countries and is currently being deployed commercially, based on 36 MNO commercial service contracts covering approximately 50 countries. Lynk is currently providing cell broadcast (emergency) alerts, and two-way SMS messaging, and intends to launch voice and mobile broadband services in the future. By partnering with Lynk via a simple roaming agreement, a mobile network operator opens the door to new revenue in untapped markets, gives subscribers peace of mind with ubiquitous connectivity, and provides a potential pathway to economic prosperity for billions. For more information, visit www.lynk.world.
About Slam Corp.
Slam Corp. (Nasdaq: SLAM) is a special purpose acquisition company established by baseball legend, investor and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of A-Rod Corp., Alex Rodriguez, and Founder, Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer of Antara Capital LP, Himanshu Gulati. Slam intends to pursue investment opportunities with companies that have large and growing addressable markets, significant revenue growth, defensible business models and superior market share.
Leading Satellite-to-Phone Company Lynk Global signs letter of intent to merge with Slam Corp. Nasdaq: SLAM
Connecting everyone, everywhere
The world’s only patented, proven & commercially licensed satellite-direct-to-standard-phone system
Lynk has proven two-way sat2phone connectivity on all seven continents, including SMS, emergency
alerts, voice calls, and data, and is scaling to provide coverage everywhere on Earth at broadband
speeds
Combined company expected to list on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “LYNK” in the second half of 2024
Lynk Global, the world’s leading satellite-direct-to-standard-phone (“sat2phone”) telecoms provider, and Slam Corp. (NASDAQ: SLAM), a special purpose acquisition company (“Slam”), today announced that they have signed a non-binding letter of intent (“LOI”)
for a potential business combination. Under the terms of the LOI, the combined company (the "Combined
Company") would operate as Lynk Global, Inc. and its common stock and warrants are expected to be
listed on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol “LYNK” and “LYNKW,” respectively.
Lynk was founded in 2017 by Charles Miller, President and CEO; Margo Deckard, COO; and Tyghe
Speidel, CTO. Lynk’s proprietary technology created the sat2phone category, which encompasses
products and services that leverage mobile phones. It designs, builds, and operates proprietary “cell
tower-in-space” satellites that provide direct-to-standard-phone connectivity and global coverage. Lynk
believes it is the world’s only patented, proven, and commercially licensed sat2phone system. Lynk has
proven two-way sat2phone connectivity on all seven continents, including SMS, emergency alerts, voice
calls, and data and is scaling to provide ubiquitous service at broadband speeds. Lynk partners with
wireless providers and mobile network operators (“MNOs”) to deliver connectivity to their customers
through their existing mobile devices.
"Lynk was created with the mission to connect everyone, everywhere by providing affordable connectivity
to billions globally using the phones already in their pockets," stated Lynk CEO, Charles Miller. "In effect,
we’ve created a new category, and our operational technology requires no change to consumers’ phones
while delivering services with immense lifesaving implications. As a public company, we will have access
to greater capital to take advantage of the satellite-direct-to-device opportunity, bringing these services to
even more people and truly ending the era of the disconnected."
Alex Rodriguez, Chief Executive Officer of Slam, said "Lynk has built a truly global platform that is set to
revolutionize the satellite-direct-to-phone sector. Since Slam's listing, we have sought to partner with a
company beyond providing capital, through operational support, commercial network expansion, and
brand amplification. Lynk is a perfect fit for our investment criteria. We are impressed by its innovative
technology and proven ability to scale. The Combined Company is positioned to make a tremendous
global impact, potentially providing broadband access to billions of people currently underserved by a
lack of mobile connectivity."
Lynk and Slam intend to finalize their definitive business combination agreement (the “Business
Combination”) in the coming weeks and will announce additional details at that time. Based on the LOI,
the Combined Company is expected to be valued at no less than $800 million upon listing, subject to
current market conditions. There can be no assurance that a definitive agreement will be entered into or
that the proposed transaction will be consummated on the terms or timeframe currently contemplated, or
at all.
Lynk Investment Highlights
Patented and Proven Technology
• Lynk believes it is the world's only patented, proven, and commercially licensed satellite-direct-to
standard-phone system.
• Lynk technology is compatible with any unmodified cellular device from 2G to 5G, and is positioned for
compatibility with future generations of devices.
• Successfully launched three commercial satellite cell towers in space and has begun operations in four
countries.
• Lynk’s technology has been tested and proven in over 25 countries and on all seven continents.
• Lynk has signed 35 commercial contracts to provide coverage in approximately 50 countries.
Attractive Satellite Communications Market Opportunity
• Satellite communications represent approximately $14 billion of the broader global connectivity market
valued at more than $1 trillion annually, growing at a 12% CAGR through 2030 to approximately $35
valued
• Satellite-direct-to-device is a new category within satellite communications that analysts estimate could
Satellitedirecttodevice is a new category within satellite com
• Approximately 750 million of the 5.4 billion existing mobile phone users are not connected on average at
any point in time due to being in "coverage black spots."
• Traditional mobile cell coverage is limited by the economics of building and operating traditional ground
based cell towers, making it cost-prohibitive to expand mobile cell coverage into remote areas lacking
coverage.
• Satellite cell towers are approximately four orders of magnitude lower in operating expense per square
mile than traditional ground-based cell towers. This allows satellite cell towers to affordably fill in black
spots and lower the pricing of ground-based cell towers.
Clear Growth Trajectory with MNOs
• Lynk partners with MNOs around the world to offer 100% geographic coverage in their territory by
integrating seamlessly with their existing network.
• Lynk believes sat2phone services could drive 40% top-line growth in the mobile wireless market from
today’s $1 trillion per year to $1.4 trillion annually.
• These estimates represent $150 billion annually from “everywhere connectivity” for the 5.4 billion existing
mobile customers, and approximately $250 billion annually from new customers who buy their first mobile
device once guaranteed coverage is in place.
Experienced and Proven Management
• Lynk leadership represents the best of the space, telecoms, and satellite industries.
• Average of 32 years of experience in the space and telecoms industries, in both the public and private
sectors.
• Three Lynk co-founders lead the c-suite.
• Proprietary network of advisors with deep expertise and experience across satellite, telecoms, and
technology industries.
Advisors
Jones Trading is serving as financial advisor and BTIG, LLC is serving as capital markets advisor to Lynk
Global, Inc. Goodwin Procter LLP is serving as legal counsel to Lynk Global, Inc. Kirkland & Ellis LLP is
serving as legal counsel to Slam Corp.
About Lynk
Lynk believes it is the world’s only patented, proven, and commercially-licensed satellite-direct-to
standard-mobile-phone system. Today, Lynk allows commercial subscribers to send and receive text
messages to and from space, via standard unmodified mobile devices. Lynk’s service has been
demonstrated in over 25 countries and is currently being deployed commercially, based on 35 MNO
commercial service contracts covering approximately 50 countries. Lynk is currently providing cell
broadcast (emergency) alerts, and two-way SMS messaging, and intends to launch voice and mobile
broadband services in the future. By partnering with Lynk via a simple roaming agreement, a mobile
network operator opens the door to new revenue in untapped markets, gives subscribers peace of mind
with ubiquitous connectivity, and may possibly provide a pathway to economic prosperity for billions. For
more information, visit www.lynk.world or follow @lynktheworld.
About Slam Corp.
Slam Corp. (Nasdaq: SLAM) is a special purpose acquisition company established by baseball legend,
investor and Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of A-Rod Corp., Alex Rodriguez, and Founder,
Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer of Antara Capital LP, Himanshu Gulati. Slam Corp. intends
to pursue investment opportunities with companies that have large and growing addressable markets,
significant revenue growth, defensible business models and superior market share.
Photonics startup Neurophos Raises $7.2 Million to build super-fast, energy efficient Metamaterial-based optical AI chips for data centers
The Neurophos Advantage = Ai compute at the speed of light
Neurophos' mission is to deliver AI computation solutions that are not just faster, but denser and more efficient. Our unique approach combines the best of optical metasurfaces and silicon photonics, offering an AI inference acceleration solution that is poised to reshape the AI landscape.
Neurophos has raised a $7.2M USD seed round to productize a breakthrough in metamaterials and optical AI inference chips. Neurophos has joined the Silicon Catalyst incubator program to accelerate product development.
Neurophos, a spinout from Duke University and Metacept Inc., has raised a $7.2M USD seed round to productize a breakthrough in both metamaterials and optical AI inference chips.
The company has been funded in a round led by Gates Frontier and supported by MetaVC, Mana Ventures, Gaingels, Trajectory Ventures and others. The seed funding will enable the production of a proprietary metasurface that serves as a tensor core processor enabled by its advanced optical properties. The company will also hire a team of engineers in Austin, Texas, a major silicon engineering hub.
Says David Smith, Duke University: "Neurophos' metamaterial is a ground-up breakthrough enabling an extraordinarily dense computing chip for next-generation AI applications."
While GPUs have had massive success in accelerating AI workloads, digital approaches are typically limited by power consumption. On the other hand, proponents of optical computing techniques claim that photonics can vastly reduce power consumption and therefore accelerate compute speeds far beyond the bounds of what is possible with modern GPUs.
Unfortunately, despite vast amounts of capital having recently been invested in optical compute for AI, the success of the field has been limited, largely because existing optical devices are too large and bulky to scale. However, metamaterials enable new paradigms for controlling the flow of light. The discovery of metamaterials has unleashed an enormous burst of creativity, leading to demonstrations of invisibility cloaks, negative refractive index materials, and many other exotic products.
Neurophos' optical metasurfaces are designed for use in data centers and their approach is already shattering world records in computational energy efficiency. Neurophos plans to use high-speed silicon photonics to drive a metasurface in-memory processor capable of fast, efficient, AI compute.
The estimated global data center electricity consumption in 2022 was 240-340 TWh(1), or around 1-1.3% of global electricity demand, and the exponential growth of AI inference workloads is threatening to push this demand to unsustainable levels. Neurophos' technology will provide way more compute per dollar spent on CAPEX and OPEX, at the same energy consumption, and reduce the total cost of ownership of AI accelerator chips and data centers.
Says Patrick Bowen, Neurophos CEO: "The most important factor in optical processors is scaling. Optical processors become both exponentially faster and more energy efficient on a per-operation basis as you make them larger. This means that in a finite chip area, the most important factor is how small you can build the optical devices that compose your processor. By leveraging metamaterials in a standard CMOS process, we have figured out how to shrink an optical processor by 8000X, which will give us orders of magnitude improvement over GPUs today."
Alexander Hayes, co-founder Metacept Inc., says: "Leaving the speed and energy use bottlenecks behind by deviating far from the Von Neumann architecture represents one of the most exciting and potentially important metamaterial and photonic applications we've ever considered."
MetaVC Partners provided Neurophos' initial funding and an exclusive license to the fund's metamaterials IP portfolio for optical computing. Neurophos was spun out of Metacept, an incubator led by David R. Smith, James B. Duke Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, focused on creating metamaterials-based companies and collaborating with Professor Smith's research group at Duke University. Neurophos CTO Tom Driscoll previously founded metamaterials-based radar company Echodyne.
Says David Smith, Duke University: "The Neurophos team has realized that the really fundamental problems of analog inference processing require a breakthrough at the level of the fundamental physics of the optical modulators. Their metamaterial is a ground-up breakthrough enabling an extraordinarily dense computing chip for next-generation AI applications."
Neurophos AI chips can be fabricated using standard CMOS processes. This gives easy access to volume manufacturing.
The company is also joining Silicon Catalyst, the world's only incubator + accelerator focused on semiconductor solutions, (including Photonics, MEMS, sensors, IP, materials & Life Sciences) to accelerate startups from idea through prototype, and onto a path to volume production. Silicon Catalyst has developed an unparalleled support ecosystem for its semiconductor start-ups, providing a strong network of financiers, business advisors, and industry professionals who help companies to launch and scale in the market. In addition, the incubator provides privileged access to services, expertise, and intellectual property that can empower their companies' technological innovation.
Paul Pickering, Managing Partner, Silicon Catalyst says: "Neurophos represents much-needed progress in analog optical computing, bringing the performance of silicon photonics to the existing manufacturing infrastructure of CMOS foundries. We are confident that they will be one of the leaders of the next generation of AI hardware. This is how you get to tomorrow quickly and without wasted capital. We are thrilled to have them in the program."
Neurophos Breakthroughs In Depth
Neurophos' advancements will decrease the size and energy needs of silicon photonic optical chips, making them more suitable for running artificial intelligence platforms such as LLM (Large Language Models).
Neurophos' metamaterial-based optical modulators are more than 1000 times smaller than those from a standard foundry PDK (Process Design Kit). This enables a technology roadmap to deliver over 1 million TOPS (Trillions of Operations Per Second) of performance. For comparison, an Nvidia H100 SMX5 today delivers at most 4000 TOPS of DNN (Deep Neural Network) performance.
Optical chips have the potential to increase processor speed while reducing power massively. Neurophos will enable this technology to be used in AI data centers. That market, which is dominated by Intel and Nvidia, currently uses traditional silicon semiconductors that create enormous amounts of heat and are struggling to scale to the performance demands of LLM for AI.
Neurophos combines two breakthroughs. The first is an optical metasurface that enables silicon photonic computing capable of ultra-fast AI inference that outstrips the density and performance of both traditional silicon computing and silicon photonics.
The second is a Compute-In-Memory (CIM) processor architecture which is fed by high-speed silicon photonics to deliver fast, efficient matrix-matrix multiplication, which make up the overwhelming majority of all operations when running, for instance, a neural net.
The metasurface-enabled optical CIM elements are thousands of times smaller than traditional silicon photonics modulators, enabling the processing of vastly larger matrices on-chip. This results in an unprecedented increase in the computational density. In optical computing, energy efficiency is proportional to array size, so Neurophos' processor is hundreds of times more energy efficient than alternatives.
Editors Notes
(1): Source, IEA analysis based on Masanet et al. (2020), Malmodin (2020), Hintemann & Hinterholzer (2022), and reported energy use data from large data center operators.
About Neurophos
Neurophos' mission is to deliver AI computation solutions that are not just faster, but more efficient and denser. Its unique approach combines the best of optical metasurfaces and silicon photonics, offering an AI inference acceleration solution that is poised to reshape the AI landscape. Neurophos will light the way to the future of AI. See: www.neurophos.com
Contact:
David Harold
press@neurophos.com
+44(0)7889658527
Lightmatter CEO Nicholas Harris talks about the future of artificial intelligence and thier rapid rise to unicorn
WATCH-> Boston-based Lightmatter CEO on their rapid growth - The developer of photonic chips specialized for AI made headlines again for closing an additional $155 million in new funding and revealing its new valuation of $1.2 billion — making Lightmatter a “unicorn” startup.
Kapital raises $40M Series B and $125M debt to scale AI driven fintech platform for LATAM SMEs
Global bank and tech platform Kapital announced they have closed an oversubscribed $40 million Series B equity financing round and $125 million debt raise. Tribe Capital led the Series B, with participation from Cervin Ventures, Tru Arrow, MS&AD Ventures, Alumni Ventures among others.
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Thriving in a desert: Kapital’s evolution building fintech in a capital-scarce world - Tribe Capital
Since announcing a $23 million Series A funding round and $45 million debt facility in May 2023, Kapital has continued to grow rapidly, fueled by its acquisition of Banco Autofin Mexico S.A. in September 2023. With these developments, Kapital is building a vertically integrated tech platform stretching beyond its current reach of loans, credit cards, invoicing and expense management – into payroll and benefits services, as well as treasury accounts.
Kapital leverages data and artificial intelligence (AI) to provide SMEs with sophisticated enterprise technology that rivals what is typically only available for large corporations via ERPs. With a Kapital account, SMEs can see and manage their business cash flows in real-time dashboards.
Kapital will use the funds to invest further in its R&D and tech platform to strengthen its cross-border offering and grow its product suite to provide insights for its customers. For example, it is using predictive analytics to benchmark how these businesses can improve margins by selecting different vendors. Kapital already uses AI to underwrite loans to SMEs. SMEs represent 90% of businesses worldwide per the World Bank1, yet in Mexico they represent only 10.5% of the total bank credit available for businesses (OECD2).
"Our recent funding round will propel us forward as we embark on an exciting expansion across Latin America and beyond. Over 80,000 customers already entrust us with the financial health of their businesses, and we are introducing more AI-driven products while pushing into new markets," said Rene Saul, Kapital's CEO and Co-Founder. "We are grateful for the confidence our customers and our investors have shown in us, and we are excited for Kapital's bright future ahead."
"Kapital is punching way above its weight," said Arjun Sethi, Chairman and CIO at Tribe Capital. "So many financial platforms raise billions before achieving this level of success: They've not only achieved venture-scale growth in a fraction of the time, but they've also done so profitably. And they're just getting started: Kapital is in Latin America today, but the potential of the platform and the company's growth aspirations are very much global. I can't wait to see them grow from $100 million run rate revenue to $1 billion of revenue over the coming years."
About Kapital
Kapital is a global bank and tech platform that is leveraging AI to disrupt the way that small and medium size enterprises operate. Today it serves 80,000 clients in Mexico, Colombia and Peru, bringing them best-in-class enterprise tech that is typically available only to large companies, at a fraction of the cost. Kapital's vertically-integrated platform gives SMEs real-time visibility into their business operations and cash flows, while empowering seamless management of loans, payroll, benefits and invoicing. Learn more at https://www.kapital.mx/
1 World Bank SME Finance
2 30. Mexico | Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs 2022 : An OECD Scoreboard | OECD iLibrary (oecd-ilibrary.org)
Lightmatter raises $155M at $1.2B valuation to accelerate growth and expand photonic chip deployments
The photonic chip leader extends Series C round to meet the increasing demand of AI and high-performance computing
“To keep growing in the AI space, fundamental new technologies are needed - that’s what we’re doing at Lightmatter” - Lightmatter, CEO Nick Harris
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Photonic Computing Startup Lightmatter Hits $1.2 Billion Valuation - Bloomberg
Announces new Toronto office, Danner Stodolskyas Vice President of Data Center Architecture, and Colin Sturt as General Counsel
Lightmatter, the leader in photonics, announced today it has raised a $155M Series C-2 led by GV (Google Ventures) and Viking Global Investors, with participation from others. With this round, Lightmatter has raised over $420 million to date and is now valued at over $1.2B. This new financing allows the company to expedite growth to meet the increasing demand for high-performance computing (HPC) from AI innovators. Lightmatter plans to expand its world-class team and office footprint while accelerating its ability to provide customers increased performance on the most advanced AI workloads.
“Lightmatter is positioned to be a key driver in powering the next generation of computing systems that will further enable AI innovation. Through photonic technologies, Lightmatter is ensuring the steady progress in computing performance continues, despite growing power consumption challenges and slowing progress with transistor scaling”
Lightmatter is developing photonic technologies that reconstruct how chips calculate and communicate, which can be leveraged by the biggest cloud providers, semiconductor companies, and enterprises for their computing needs. The company provides a full stack of photonics-enabled hardware and software solutions that simultaneously reduce power consumption and increase performance. This is essential for highly compute-intensive workloads such as AI, which have grown rapidly to affect every critical industry.
“Lightmatter is positioned to be a key driver in powering the next generation of computing systems that will further enable AI innovation. Through photonic technologies, Lightmatter is ensuring the steady progress in computing performance continues, despite growing power consumption challenges and slowing progress with transistor scaling,” said Lightmatter co-founder and CEO, Nick Harris. “We are thankful for the support of our investors, each of whom share our vision of Lightmatter playing an integral role in the future of computing. By increasing speed, lowering cost, and reducing environmental impact, our technologies can continue to push the limits of what’s possible, fueling greater AI adoption and innovation.”
“In the rapidly evolving landscape of generative AI, the demand for new compute and chip communication solutions is unprecedented,” said Erik Nordlander, General Partner at GV. “Lightmatter is harnessing the power of silicon photonics to meet this challenge, unlocking performance bottlenecks, increasing bandwidth, and allowing AI models to increase in size and scale.”
Since the company’s last funding announcement in May 2023, Lightmatter has grown its headcount more than 50% to meet client demand and product milestones. As a result of this expansion, Lightmatter plans to open a Toronto office in 2024. The company has also bolstered its leadership team, hiring Danner Stodolsky as Vice President of Data Center Architecture and Colin Sturt as General Counsel. Danner will lead the design, simulation and evaluation of large-scale systems based on Lightmatter's technology. Danner was previously Senior Vice President of Cloud at SambaNova and a Vice President of Engineering at Google. Colin will lead the legal and compliance functions to support Lightmatter’s growth, IP portfolio, and expansion of contractual relationships. He brings over 20 years of semiconductor industry experience to Lightmatter and was most recently Senior Vice President and General Counsel at Dialog Semiconductor.
About Lightmatter
Lightmatter is leading the revolution of computing, reducing impact on our planet, and enabling the next giant leaps in human progress. With the company’s photonics-enabled technologies, Lightmatter has reinvented how chips communicate and calculate. Its photonic interconnect and compute products simultaneously reduce the power consumption and increase the performance of silicon running the most advanced AI and HPC workloads.
Contacts
Media Contact:
John O’Brien
lightmatter@sbscomms.com