French startup Arago has raised a $26 million seed round to develop AI chips that rely on light instead of electricity, aiming to slash energy consumption by 10 to 30 times compared to traditional Nvidia chips.
Founded in Paris by former ETH Zurich researchers, Arago includes CEO Nicolas Muller—a deep tech veteran—among its co-founders.
The round was led by Earlybird and Visionaries Tomorrow (Europe), and Protagonist (US), with participation from GenerativeIQ, C4 Ventures, and notable angels like:
- Bertrand Serlet, former Apple VP
- Thomas Wolf, Hugging Face co-founder
Arago aims to tackle the high energy demands of hyperscale data centers by using photons rather than electrons, reducing heat and boosting efficiency.
The company has built a working prototype of its optical AI chip, which is compatible with current AI hardware infrastructure.
Operating under a fabless model, Arago designs its chips and outsources manufacturing to partners in Europe and the U.S., enabling faster innovation cycles.
