Lumai Secures More Than $10M Investment to Slash AI Processing Costs, Boost Performance and Improve Data Center Sustainability

Optical Processing Breakthrough Addresses Limitations of AI Compute

/EIN News/ -- OXFORD, United Kingdom, April 02, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lumai, an AI accelerator startup using optics to address global computational challenges, today announced that it has secured more than a $10 million investment. Lumai’s revolutionary optical computing technology will help AI data centers dramatically reduce costs and boost performance – while simultaneously minimizing 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 center 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 traveling through 3D space, bypassing the limits of silicon GPUs and integrated photonics. By utilizing 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 centers, lowering both capital costs and total cost of ownership.

Tim Weil, CEO and co-founder at Lumai, commented, “The future of AI demands radical breakthroughs in computing. The cost of current LLMs is unsustainable, and next-generation AI won’t happen without a major shift. Lumai’s innovative optical computing design overcomes the scalability challenges that have held others back and dramatically reduces power consumption, which will drive down the cost of AI.”

Investors Speak Out

"Life and intelligence are a large carbon-and electron-based neural model trained over 2 billion years,” noted Dr. Serg Bell, Founder and Chairman of Constructor Capital. “Fossil fuels are a byproduct of this evolution, and they may not generate enough energy to create a better model if we continue using electron-based computation. We need more efficient, faster energy sources for the next generation of humanity's neocortex: Artificial General Intelligence. Photons are the only known choice. Lumai’s technology is a significant step forward in improving matrix multiplication, similar to the advancements quantum computers offer for other computational scenarios.”

Dr. Lee Thornton, partner – deeptech at IP Group, added, “Having solved the challenges of optical compute to provide a low-cost, scalable solution, Lumai’s technology has the potential to transform the future of AI. We are proud to continue supporting Lumai as it embarks on the next phase of its journey.”

“Lumai isn’t just innovating — it is fundamentally reshaping the future of AI compute,” noted Ewit Roos, General Partner, PhotonVentures. “Lumai presents one of the most compelling opportunities in next-generation data center technology, positioning it at the forefront of the AI revolution.”

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 program. 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 program, while co-founder Dr. James Spall was selected to join the prestigious Photonics 100 list for 2025.

To learn more about Lumai’s groundbreaking optical AI technology, visit www.lumai.ai.

Notes
*Source: Report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

About Constructor Capital 
Constructor Capital is a science-based global Venture Capital fund investing in early-stage startups. The fund’s primary focus is to assist visionary founders in building ground-breaking solutions that will drive real-world change across three vital sectors, namely Software, Deep Tech, and Edu Tech. Constructor Capital is part of the Constructor Group, a multifaceted and integrated ecosystem dedicated to advancing the fields of science, technology and education. Founded in 2019 by Dr. Serg Bell, a long-time technology and education entrepreneur and investor, Constructor Group combines extensive educational opportunities, research capabilities, and commercial services to allow for the next wave of technological breakthroughs that will help overcome tomorrow’s challenges.

About IP Group
IP Group accelerates the impact of science for a better future. As the most active UK based, early stage science investor, we develop and support some of the world’s most exciting businesses in deeptech, life sciences and cleantech (led by Kiko Ventures). Through Parkwalk, the UK's largest growth EIS fund manager, we also back world-changing innovation emerging in leading universities and research institutions. Our specialist investment team combines sector expertise with an international approach. Together we have a strong track record of success, having backed high-profile companies including Oxford Nanopore Technologies plc, First Light Fusion, Hysata, and Oxa. IP Group is listed on the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange under the code IPO. 

About PhotonVentures 
PhotonVentures is a deep tech venture capital firm with a dedicated focus on the key enabling technology of integrated photonics. With strong in-house expertise, the team has a deep understanding of the industry’s success factors and value inflection points. This unique position enables PhotonVentures to invest capital, time, and network into Europe’s most promising integrated photonics companies – accelerating their growth and supporting their journey from innovation to impact.

About Lumai 
Built by a highly skilled founding team, Lumai’s AI technology was spun out of world-leading optics research at the University of Oxford. Lumai was founded to develop a scalable computing solution to meet the growing demand for AI performance while minimizing energy consumption. Its unique optical technology overcomes the scalability challenges of optical computing, surpassing the limitations of both silicon-based GPUs and other photonic solutions. With its outstanding power efficiency, Lumai significantly reduces the operating costs of running AI processors.

Lumai was part of Intel Ignite’s first London cohort and the company won ‘Best Overall Technology’ at the OCP Future Technologies Symposium. Lumai’s Head of Research, Xianxin Guo, was recently chosen to join the Royal Academy of Engineering’s prestigious Shott Accelerator program and co-founder James Spall was also recognized in the 2025 Photonics 100.

For more information, visit www.lumai.ai or follow the company on LinkedIn.

Media Contact:
Stephanie Olsen
Lages & Associates
(949) 453-8080
stephanie@lages.com

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at: 

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Lumai

Lumai is tackling the limitations of AI compute by using optical processing to accelerate LLMs and other transformer-based AI. Lumai’s accelerator is designed to cut AI inference costs to one-tenth of current solutions – and deliver 50x the performance of silicon-only accelerators while using just 10% of the power required for AI in data centers.

Lumai team

Lumai’s technology was spun out of world-leading optics research at the University of Oxford. From left to right: CEO & Co-Founder Tim Weil, Co-Founder & Head of Research Dr. Xianxin Guo, Co-Founder James Spall, Head of Product Phillip Burr