CuspAI, a platform for developing new materials to tackle global sustainability and clean energy challenges, is to be valued at $2.6 billion (almost £2bn) by fresh funding which includes Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
CuspAI leverages generative AI, deep learning and molecular simulation to streamline the material design process. The platform functions like a search engine for materials, allowing users to request specific properties for new materials on-demand.
This enables the rapid generation and evaluation of a vast number of novel structures, ultimately leading to the discovery of materials with precise functionalities.
The Cambridge firm was founded just two years ago by Professor Max Welling, a renowned pioneer in AI and former Distinguished Scientist and VP at Microsoft Research and Qualcomm, and Professor at the University of Amsterdam; and Dr Chad Edwards, a chemist who has spent his career in DeepTech commercialisation including at Google and BASF and most recently quantum computing leader Quantinuum.
Geoffrey Hinton, known as the ‘Godfather of AI’, serves as a board advisor.
In September last year CuspAI raised secured more than $100m (£74m) in Series A funding, valuing it at $520m. The new $400m funding round, which is yet to be finalised, includes Silicon Valley venture capitalists Kleiner Perkins and Bezos Expeditions, the Amazon founder’s family office, according to the Financial Times.
It also raised a £24m seed round in summer 2024. Backers include New Enterprise Associates, Temasek, NVentures (NVIDIA’s venture capital arm), Samsung Ventures, Hyundai Motor Group. Basis Set Ventures, FJ Labs, Giant Ventures, LocalGlobe, Northzone, Prosus Ventures, Tiferes Ventures and Touring Capital.
Angel investors include Durk Kingma (OpenAI co-founder), Zoubin Ghahramani (Google VP research), Arash Ferdowsi (founder of Dropbox), Thomas Wolf (founder of Hugging Face) and Victor Riparbelli (founder and CEO of Synthesia).
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“Humanity will face many challenges in the coming decade. Some will be caused by AI while others can be solved by AI,” Hinton said in 2024.
“I’ve been very impressed by CuspAI and its mission to accelerate the design process of new materials using AI to curb one of humanity’s most urgent challenges – climate change.”