UK semiconductor startups reportedly raised $1.6 billion in the first nine months of 2026, according to HSBC and Dealroom data cited by The Times and Techopia. The reported total covers the period from January through September. Techopia put the full-year 2025 figure at $1.3 billion, then a record for the sector.
Three approaches to AI hardware
AI workloads depend on moving data between processors and memory, and between processors in a data center. Fractile, Olix and Salience Labs are developing different approaches to those demands.
Fractile: bring memory closer to processing
Fractile is developing a processor architecture that physically interleaves memory and processing components. The company’s approach aims to reduce the movement of data between them. The Times reported on October 19, 2026, that Fractile had not launched a commercial product and expected full-scale data-center deployment in 2027.
Olix: connect inference chips with light
Olix is developing specialized chips for different stages of AI inference, the process of running a trained model to produce outputs. Its design links those chips with optical interconnects that transfer data using light.
Salience Labs: switch optical connections
Salience Labs is developing optical circuit switches for AI data-center networks. These switches direct optical connections between GPUs, helping move data through the network. The company says it plans to use its new funding to support deployment, expand manufacturing and grow in the United States.
Salience Labs’ confirmed funding
On October 14, 2026, the British Business Bank announced that Salience Labs had raised a $125 million Series B. The bank invested £10 million in the round. Its announcement of the investment and funding round also describes the company’s optical-switching work in AI data centers.
The funding total brings together investment in a sector with distinct technical bets, from Fractile’s memory-focused processor design to Olix’s optical links and Salience Labs’ network switches. Fractile’s expected 2027 deployment remained a forecast in The Times’ October 2026 report.
