Vaire Computing has secured $4.5M to pioneer reversible computing
Vaire Computing, a startup founded by Rodolfo Rosini and Hannah Earley, has raised $4 million to develop reversible computing technology, which aims to drastically reduce energy consumption and heat generation in computer processors by allowing computations to run in both directions.
Current computers require so much energy because they are not very efficient. They run in one direction only, from inputs to outputs, and erase previous outputs often, an action that, in addition to losing a lot of information, consumes plenty of energy only to release most of it as heat. The long-standing strategy to compensate for the low-efficiency rates of individual semiconductor devices has been to make them as small as possible to pack as many of them into a circuit. Unfortunately, this strategy is reaching its limits, as miniaturization becomes harder. Moreover, even as chipmakers find new ways to pack even more transistors into chips, the performance is not improving as it used to.
Because of these challenges, some experts are backing reversible computing as the perfect alternative to the current computing standard. If successful, reversible computation would drastically reduce energy consumption and heat generation. Reversible computing allows computations to run in both directions. This approach enables energy capture within the chip, meaning it is no longer released as heat. As a result, reversible computation-based processors would consume negligible amounts of energy and generate little to no heat.
Founded by entrepreneur Rodolfo Rosini and University of Cambridge researcher Hannah Earley, Vaire Computing aims to create reversible computing silicon chips that could be as transformative as the shift from incandescent bulbs to LEDs. Because the technology is not domain-specific, it could equally address the energy demands of AI model training and inference and revolutionize the entire computer industry. Vaire Computing recognizes that the concept isn't new, and the company is confident that its team can overcome the challenges associated with materializing reversible computing.
The $4 million seed round was led by deep-tech fund 7percent Ventures and Jude Gomila, with participation from Seedcamp, Clim8, and notable industry figures. Vaire Computing is one of the companies selected to the second UK cohort for Intel Ignite, Intel’s global startup accelerator program for early-stage deep tech startups. The company has also strengthened its team by hiring Mike Frank, a prominent reversible computing researcher.
