Rebecca McCarthy 
Graphcore is a UK-based artificial intelligence chip maker that recently raised $222 million in a funding round. The company is a direct competitor to Nvidia and aims to become a leader in the AI chip market.
With an IPO on the horizon, this British tech start-up is one to watch out for.
Overview of Graphcore
Graphcore is a UK-based artificial intelligence (AI) company, founded in 2016. The company has developed an AI processor and software designed to dramatically increase machine learning tasks’ speed, scale and accuracy. Investors including Microsoft, BMW, and venture capital firms such as Sequoia Capital backed Graphcore.
The company’s groundbreaking IPU technology is based on a sophisticated graphic processing architecture that enables faster machine learning data processing. Graphcore’s IPU allows for quick analysis of large datasets and the implementation of complex models of AI while reducing power requirements.
The IPU enables the implementation of sophisticated models such as deep learning neural networks involving multiple layers and vast numbers of operations and calculations. Furthermore, the IPU’s acceleration capabilities make it much faster than other AI processors when executing certain algorithms widely used in industries including healthcare, self-driving vehicles and drug discovery.
Graphcore’s Core Business
Graphcore is an AI chip developer based in Bristol, UK. Founded in 2016, the company has succeeded through their AI microprocessors and is now seen as a legitimate rival to Nvidia.
Graphcore recently closed a $222 million funding round, which indicates that the company may be looking to go public soon.
Let’s explore what Graphcore does and how it’s managed to become a leader in the AI industry.
AI Chip Development
Graphcore is an AI hardware company that designs and creates high-performance computing chips for machines to process data more efficiently. Their Intelligence Processing Units (IPUs) significantly speed up machine calculations with higher efficiency and lower power demands than traditional processors, allowing businesses to quickly adapt models and process enormous data sets in real-time. By making AI more feasible and accessible, Graphcore is leading the shift towards democratising the use of AI.
Graphcore’s flagship product line IPU-M2000 makes accessing AI more secure and cost-effective without compromising quality or practicality. This chip includes a revolutionary software stack that works seamlessly with unique deep learning algorithms, allowing developers to tap into advanced research without additional licensing fees or cost barriers. In addition, its sophisticated memory subsystem enables large models to run faster and facilitates model reuse — an innovative way of reducing training costs while increasing accuracy. This system also provides users with reduced development cycles, allowing businesses to stay agile in an increasingly competitive environment where timely decision making is essential for success.
Graphcore’s modern architecture ensures reliable performance at all times, eliminating the bottlenecks associated with traditional CPUs and GPUs through intelligent workload distribution that reduces latency, latency jitter and eliminates massive parallel overheads caused by CPU/GPU architectures. Supporting state of the art features like configurable memory hierarchy which allows for unparalleled speed up of multi-dimensional workloads — Graphcore’s IPU-M1000 redefines what chip technology can do for machine intelligence tasks across all industries from retail analytics to autonomous cars.
Software Platforms
Software platforms developed by Graphcore are designed to drive breakthroughs in artificial intelligence and machine learning. The company has established two leading platforms that empower businesses to apply AI for real world applications:
Graphcore Intelligence Processing Units (IPUs): Graphcore’s cutting-edge IPUs are optimised specifically for deep learning and artificial intelligence workloads. They provide ultra-fast processing power and reduce latency, allowing developers to accelerate time-to-insight for AI insight projects.
Graphcore Software Platform: Graphcore’s Software Platform enables AI engineers to develop, profile and optimise machine-learning models more quickly than ever before by providing full control over every aspect of training on a production scale. With tools such as graph streaming, visualisation and full debugging capabilities, this platform makes it easier for developers to understand what their models do under the hood.
This platform also includes powerful tools like AutoML, accelerating the development cycle with automated data analysis, modelling and hyperparameter optimization. With AutoML’s model performance tracking and visualisations, engineers can obtain clear insight into how their model works across different tasks enabling them to improve the accuracy of their predictions faster than ever before.
By offering these innovative platforms, Graphcore is transforming how businesses worldwide use AI applications to solve complex problems at scale – revolutionising the future of data analytics and machine learning technology.
Graphcore’s Investors
Graphcore, the Artificial Intelligence chip company, has had a remarkable journey in the past few years. The company has raised $222 million in funding from investors such as Microsoft, Dell Technologies Capital, Bosch, Samsung Electronics, and LG Electronics.
Let’s take a closer look at the investors that back Graphcore and the potential of an IPO on the horizon.
Major Investors
Graphcore, the company behind the IPU, has attracted great interest from major investors. This includes investors who have understood Graphcore’s potential to revolutionise AI and Computing technology in several areas and applications. These major investors who have invested in Graphcore since its Series A round include Bosch, BMW, Microsoft, Dell Technologies Capital, Catalin AlternetX GP LLC (led by Linus Torvalds), and Samsung Electronics.
In December 2018, Graphcore raised its largest ever funding round of $200 million led by US technology-focused investment firm Moore Capital Investment Management with participation from existing shareholders Robert Bosch Venture Capital GmbH and Dell Technologies Capital. This funding enabled Graphcore to expand its IPU platform for AI application developers and businesses seeking ultra-high performance computing power for AI projects in 2020 and beyond. The goal is to bring the latest innovation in software-defined architectures such as TensorFlow 2.0 to be used with IPUs.
Over recent years, GraphCore has been accepted into prestigious accelerators such as Y Combinator’s winter 2016 batch; as well as receiving recognition from many distinguished awards for their innovation including The Best Robotics Startup at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2019; Best of Show at Hot Chips 2019; Most Innovative Company at DesignCon – Silicon Valley 2018; Industry Innovation Award – General Semiconductor category at ARM TechCon 2017; and Top 5 most innovative startups at Computex 2017 respectively.
Recent Funding Rounds
Recent funding rounds have enabled Graphcore to become a major player in the AI hardware space. In 2020, the company secured $222 million in its series D round, bringing their total capital raised to date to over $450 million. MoonShot led the funding, joined by previous investors including Temasek, Robert Bosch Venture Capital GmbH and Atomico.
This series D financing made GraphCore the most highly-funded AI chip startup in Europe with valuations estimated to exceed $2 billion. With this new capital infusion and continued success, GraphCore’s outlook on the future is bright. The company expects its total number of customers to triple before 2021 and its product portfolio growth rate is estimated at more than 60%.
In addition to funding general operations and continued product development, this round secured key partnerships for GraphCore with global electronics retailers like Amazon and Alibaba and leading commercial manufacturers like Dell Technologies and Microsoft Azure. Such partnerships have solidified GraphCore as one of the top AI hardware innovators today.
Nvidia rival Graphcore raises $222 million for AI chips with potential IPO on the horizon
Graphcore is a UK-based semiconductor company that has been causing a stir in the AI chip world recently. The company recently raised $222 million in a funding round and has an IPO somewhere on the horizon.
In this article, we’ll look in-depth at Graphcore, its current offerings, and its potential future.
Potential IPO
Graphcore, founded in 2016 and based in Bristol, is a leading manufacturer of specialist intelligent processor chips. They are best known for developing intelligence processing units (IPUs) that can take on extremely complex computing tasks. Recently, Graphcore has announced plans to potentially file for an initial public offering (IPO) with the US Securities and Exchange Commission by the end of 2020 or early 2021.
This exciting development could see Graphcore valued at around $4 billion to facilitate this move. They have been considering an IPO since 2018 and most recently floated the idea in their Series D funding round which raised over $200 million. This could give them the financial support necessary to go public and expand into new markets such as edge computing, automotive and robotics applications.
It’s worth noting that many details are yet to be determined such as what type of security will be sold and when exactly they will go public if they follow through with this effort. It is also important to note that while these developments are promising they do not guarantee a successful IPO nor can it guarantee growth potential for those investing in this company’s stock if made available on the public market.
Expansion into Other Markets
Graphcore has already established itself as a global leader in artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning solutions, and it is well positioned to expand into other markets shortly. With a focus on customer experience, Graphcore is set to become the world’s leading AI/ML provider for large enterprises.
As part of this effort, Graphcore engages with customers and partners across multiple industries, including media & entertainment, retail, healthcare, healthcare analytics, automotive and public infrastructure. In addition, the firm has an impressive list of customer relationships with some of the industry’s most recognizable brands such as Disney and Google.
Furthermore, Graphcore offers cutting-edge AI solutions tailored to meet its customers’ specific needs, allowing them to elevate their customer experiences while driving revenue growth. This includes solutions such as language recognition software that can identify more than 33 languages in over 100 environments and facial recognition software that can identify individuals quickly and accurately without fail.
By continuing to engage with customers across multiple industries and providing tailored solutions for their needs Graphcore is setting itself up for long term success in the rapidly expanding field of AI/ML technology.
