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

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.