Startup Akash Systems Receives $68.2 Million in Funding

The U.S. Department of Commerce has awarded a startup company, Akash Systems, $68.2 million in funding, including $18.2 million in direct funding and $50 million in federal and state tax credits. While this is not yet a binding contract that will provide the company with committed funds, it is an important first step in the negotiation process for the Oakland-based startup, indicating that both the company and the U.S. government are moving toward a formal agreement. According to Akash Systems (h/t Axios), the company will use the funds to strengthen its business of producing diamond-cooled semiconductors for artificial intelligence, data centers, space applications, and defense markets.

 

Akash Systems focuses on advanced thermal management solutions in the technology sector. The company provides products that integrate diamond materials to achieve superior heat dissipation, thereby improving the performance of electronic devices. Akash Systems' products are mainly used in fields such as artificial intelligence, data centers, space exploration, automobiles and electric vehicles (EVs), and communications. Akash Systems was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

Diamond cooling technology is superior to using nano-diamond thermal paste. For example, some use synthetic diamond as a chip substrate, using the material's thermal conductivity to more efficiently move heat away from the processor. Akash did not elaborate on the specific working principle of its diamond cooling technology, but the company said that it has fused synthetic diamond with conductive materials such as gallium nitride to use it as a semiconductor. So, to start with, the company can buy GPU chips from suppliers and then mount them on its own diamond GaN PCB. Therefore, in the long run, the company can produce its own synthetic diamond wafers for manufacturers such as Nvidia and Qualcomm to use in chip manufacturing.

 

It is also worth noting that Akash has combined its own technology and supply chain advantages to launch AI server products using Diamond Cooling. By reducing the temperature of the GPU by 10-20 degrees Celsius, Akash can save data center operators with hundreds of servers millions of dollars in cooling costs. The temperature reduction will also cause the GPU to reach its inherent speed limit without thermal throttling. With Diamond Cooled servers, Akash has set a new global benchmark in AI server performance to meet the growing needs of data centers and high-performance computing applications.

In the rapidly growing artificial intelligence industry, efficient thermal management is critical to supporting AI's extreme demands while mitigating its impact on the world's limited energy supply. Akash Systems' new Diamond Cooled servers meet this need, leveraging the extreme thermal properties of synthetic diamond (the most thermally conductive material in the known world) to reduce GPU temperatures, thereby reducing cooling costs for servers and the data centers they occupy. This innovation enables already liquid-cooled servers to run at higher clock cycles while also reducing thermal throttling - a well-known phenomenon in which the server's operating system reduces the workload on the GPU to reduce GPU hot spot temperatures.

 

However, behind this seemingly ordinary business cooperation, there are many questions hidden. First, why Akash Systems? What is so unique about this company that it can receive such a huge amount of financial support? Second, how will this money be used specifically? Why does the US government want to support a private enterprise so vigorously? Is there a deeper strategic consideration behind this?

In fact, it can be seen that this funding is part of the US strategy to strengthen the domestic semiconductor industry chain. Specifically, this funding is not only a recognition of Akash Systems' technology, but also reflects the US's attention to the dual goals of "technological autonomy" and "energy efficiency" in the semiconductor industry.