Calligo Technologies Secures $1.1 Million in Pre-Series A Funding for AI-Focused Semiconductor Development

Bengaluru-Based Calligo Technologies Secures $1.1 Mn in Series A Funding

Over the next 12 to 18 months, Calligo aims to expand its market presence, engineering talent and tech capabilities. Calligo Technologies, a semiconductor startup based in Bangalore, has raised $1.1 million in a pre-series A funding round led by Seafund and Artha Venture Fund. The funds will be used for research and development expenses to develop version 2.0 of the company's silicon chip. Founded by Anantha Kinnal and Rajaraman Subramanian, the company announced the investment on Monday. Calligo develops products and solutions for high-performance computing (HPC), big data, and AI workloads. The company claims to have achieved a breakthrough by successfully designing a POSIT-based version 1.0 semiconductor chip. Calligo has adapted RISC-V compilers and frameworks to support Posits, enabling the generation of Posit-enabled executables without requiring source-level modifications for HPC/AI applications. Over the next 12 to 18 months, the company aims to expand its market presence by allowing customers to experience its current offerings and preparing its System-on-Chip (version 2.0 of Silicon) for large-scale production. Calligo plans to expand its engineering talent and tech capabilities to build version 2.0 of the silicon chip and establish partnerships with system integrators and OEMs/ODMs. As Narendra Bhandari, general partner at Seafund, noted, compute requirements are growing exponentially worldwide. "Calligo chips and platforms improve performance and reduce data power consumption with their innovative approach," he said. The company aims to solve performance bottlenecks in computing needed for large-scale modeling and simulations. It has also collaborated with US universities and national laboratories to improve access to tech talent and has started shipping its accelerator board to customers. Kinnal, co-founder and CEO at Calligo, highlighted the potential of POSIT, saying, "POSIT is a game-changing invention for real-number representation, as it tackles this issue by enabling the use of fewer computing bits for the same or improved mathematical accuracy, higher energy efficiency, and an increase in dynamic range." The investment highlights the increasing demand for efficient computing solutions, particularly as AI and HPC workloads grow exponentially. In response to this demand, Calligo seeks to establish a presence in India's semiconductor market, which is projected to experience significant growth in the coming years.

Semiconductor startup Calligo Technologies raises $1.1 million from Seafund, Artha Venture Fund

The builder of products and solutions for high-performance computing, big data, and AI workloads will use the funds mopped up in the pre-Series A round to develop version 2.0 of its Posit-based silicon chip, expand the engineering team, and build partnerships with system integrators, OEMs, and original design manufacturers.Semiconductor startup Calligo Technologies has raised $1.1 million in a pre-Series A round led by Seafund and Artha Venture Fund. The Bengaluru-based company plans to use the funds to develop version 2.0 of its Posit-based silicon chip, expand its engineering team, and build partnerships with system integrators, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and original design manufacturers (ODMs). Founded by Anantha Kinnal, Rajaraman Subramanian, and Vinay N Hebbali, Calligo Technologies builds products and solutions for high-performance computing (HPC), big data, and artificial intelligence (AI) workloads. The company aims to solve the performance bottlenecks of computing needed for large-scale modelling and simulations in HPC systems and large-model training and inference needed in AI systems. Calligo Tech said its chip, built using a number representation system called Posit, can improve computing speed and energy efficiency. Over the past year, the company has partnered with universities, national labs, and supercomputing centres in the US and has begun soft-launching operations there. "Insatiable demand for computing for HPC/AI has thus far been addressed by adding more and more hardware, without addressing computing efficiency at grass-root levels," said Kinnal, cofounder and CEO of Calligo Tech. "Posit is a game-changing invention for real-number representation, as it tackles this issue by enabling the use of fewer computing bits for the same or improved mathematical accuracy, higher energy efficiency, and an increase in dynamic range." According to Custom Market Insights, India's semiconductor market was valued at $6.67 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach $14.09 billion by 2032, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 10.1%. "In the last three to six months, the rate at which computing resources are being consumed, across all these platforms like ChatGPT, Perplexity, or Llama AI, the need for faster silicon has never been more than that in the past. The positive about that is there is a huge market for semiconductors, which is continuously growing. The challenge with that is that the demand for power seems to be outpacing a lot of our infrastructure today," said Narendra Bhandari, general partner, Seafund.

Calligo Tech Pockets Funding To Build Its Second Silicon Chip

Founded in 2012, Calligo Tech develops chips and software aimed at improving computing efficiency in high-performance computing (HPC), big data, and AI. Bengaluru-based semiconductor startup Calligo Technologies has raised $1.1 Mn (around INR 9.4 Cr) in a Pre-Series A funding round co-led by Seafund and Artha Venture Fund. The startup plans to use the fresh capital to build its second version of silicon chip, expand engineering talent and foster partnerships with system integrators and OEMs/ODMs. Founded by Anantha Kinnal, Rajaraman Subramanian and Vinay N Hebbali in 2012, CalligoTech develops hardware and software products for high performance computing (HPC), big data and AI workloads. The company focuses on solving performance bottlenecks in computing needed for large-scale modeling and simulations in HPC systems. "Insatiable demand for computing for HPC/AI has thus far been addressed by adding more and more hardware, without addressing computing efficiency at grass-root levels," Kinnal said.

Calligo Tech Pockets Funding To Build Its Second Semicon Chip

Founded in 2012, Calligo Tech develops chips and software aimed at improving computing efficiency in high-performance computing (HPC), big data, and AI. Bengaluru-based semiconductor startup Calligo Technologies has raised $1.1 Mn (around INR 9.4 Cr) in a Pre-Series A funding round co-led by Seafund and Artha Venture Fund. The startup plans to use the fresh capital to build its second version of silicon chip, expand engineering talent and foster partnerships with system integrators and OEMs/ODMs. Founded by Anantha Kinnal, Rajaraman Subramanian and Vinay N Hebbali in 2012, CalligoTech develops hardware and software products for high performance computing (HPC), big data and AI workloads. The company focuses on solving performance bottlenecks in computing needed for large-scale modeling and simulations in HPC systems. "Insatiable demand for computing for HPC/AI has thus far been addressed by adding more and more hardware, without addressing computing efficiency at grass-root levels," Kinnal said.