Lumai, an AI accelerator startup using optics to address global computational challenges, today announced that it has secured more than a £8 million investment. Lumai’s revolutionary optical computing technology will help AI data centres dramatically reduce costs and boost performance – while simultaneously minimising energy consumption.
The round was led by VC investor Constructor Capital, which works with visionary founders building ground-breaking companies across the deep tech sector. It was also supported by existing investor IP Group, alongside new investors PhotonVentures, Journey Ventures, LIFTT, Qubits Ventures, State Farm Ventures, and TIS Inc. Lumai will use this investment to support its next stage of growth – advancing product development, doubling its headcount, and expanding its U.S. presence.
This investment comes at a pivotal time for the industry as power-hungry AI models and the drive to artificial general intelligence are pushing silicon-based compute to its limits. With data centre power use in the U.S. expected to triple by 2028, consuming up to 12% of the country’s power, the time is now to address the performance and sustainability challenges plaguing the industry.
A Game-Changer for AI Compute
Spun out of the University of Oxford, Lumai is tackling the limitations of AI compute by using optical processing to accelerate large language models (LLMs) and other transformer-based AI. Lumai has succeeded where others have failed, overcoming the scalability challenges of optical computing. Its technology processes AI’s core arithmetic operations within optical beams travelling through 3D space, bypassing the limits of silicon GPUs and integrated photonics. By utilising low-cost optical components, the PCIe form factor enables cost-effective, high-performance AI inference, positioning Lumai as a key enabler of AI’s future.
The company’s accelerator will cut AI inference costs to one-tenth of today’s top solutions. Lumai’s unique design will deliver 50 times the performance of silicon-only accelerators while using just 10% of the power required for AI in data centres, lowering both capital costs and total cost of ownership.
This backing reflects growing confidence in Lumai’s technology and market potential. The company recently won ‘Best Overall Technology’ at the Global OCP Future Technologies Symposium and was selected in the first cohort of companies to complete Intel Ignite’s London programme. Its head of research and co-founder, Dr. Xianxin Guo, was also chosen to join the Royal Academy of Engineering’s prestigious Shott Accelerator 2024 programme, while co-founder Dr. James Spall was selected to join the prestigious Photonics 100 list for 2025.
