The Optical Revolution : How Lumai is redefining AI computing

Gcore, a European company, has evolved from a CDN business to an AI-driven edge computing company with a focus on sovereignty and private AI solutions. The company's unique value proposition lies in its combination of AI, compute, storage, delivery, and security, as well as its ability to provide complex, private, and hybrid solutions. Gcore's financial profile has evolved from bootstrapping to raising capital for GPU and AI capacity, with a focus on partnerships and cross-adoption across existing businesses. The company's optimism stems from the huge demand for its services, its innovative approach, and its sustainable, profitable business model.TakeawaysAI-driven edge computing with a focus on sovereignty and private AI solutionsGcore's financial evolution from bootstrapping to raising capital and its focus on partnershipsChapters00:00 Evolution from CDN to AI-Driven Edge Computing03:01 Inflection Point: Move to AI and Sovereignty Focus06:05 Unique Value Proposition and Market Differentiation09:09 European Regulatory Tailwind and Geographic Play18:50 Future of Compute Technologies and Financial Profile26:03 European Demand and Competitive Environment28:57 Optimism and Growth Trajectory

In this episode, hosted by our General Partner Marie Lepske, with one of our Portfolio companies Co-Founder and CEO Michael Kissner, from Akhetonics, a groundbreaking Deep Tech startup building the world's first all-optical digital general-purpose computer.While the hardware world races toward smaller, increasingly complex electrical nodes, the industry is bumping up against hard physical limits. Michael shares how a chance meeting in a German beer garden during the tail end of Covid-19 led to a radical realization: the next frontier of computing isn’t electronic, it’s photonic.In this episode, we explore:The Genesis of Akhetonics: How a deep dive into chip security and real hardware vulnerability analysis shifted focus toward optical computing.Why "Digital" Optics Matter: A clear breakdown of why Akhetonics chose the robust path of optical digital architecture ($0$ and $1$, light on or off) over noise-sensitive optical analog or quantum alternatives.The Power of Deterministic Hardware: Why time-of-flight computing makes these chips ideal for edge devices and safety-critical environments like avionics and defense, where predictable processing time is life or death.The 5-Year Roadmap: From open-sourcing their instruction set architecture, driver, and compiler in the near future, to running Doom on an all-optical rack unit, and their ultimate goal of miniaturization for edge AI applications by 2027.Tune in to discover how Akhetonics plans to become the essential backbone for the future of classic high-performance and quantum computing, right out of Europe.

Lumai's journey from research to business, the breakthrough in optical compute, the co-founding of Lumai, the business model and value proposition, the future of the AI hardware landscape, and the vision for Lumai in 2030.Episode hosted by Matthias Winter, Managing Partner at Constructor Capital with Xianxin Guo, CEO and Co-Founder of Lumai. TakeawaysTransition from research to businessBreakthrough in optical computeChapters00:00 The Birth of Lumai06:50 Challenges in Optical Compute12:23 Co-Founding Lumai18:20 Market and Business Model28:39 Series B and Future Plans36:11 Vision for Lumai in 2030

The podcast episode introduces Constructor Capital and Fund I, discussing the market gap it aims to fill and the design decisions made for the fund. It explores the science-based approach to investment decisions, the value for founders in due diligence, and the opportunities and challenges in deep tech and science-based startups. The episode also covers the Constructor Start program, the influence of operator background on evaluating early stage founders, and the LP expectations and collaboration opportunities with Constructor Capital.It's hosted by the CMO Cláudio Meireles, and it has as guests the Managing Partner Matthias Winter, and two of the General partners Marie Lepske and Alex Fine. TakeawaysEarly stage VC fund investing in deep tech , Edtech and B2B platform companiesConstructor Capital's approach to due diligence and support for foundersChapters00:00 Introduction to Constructor Capital06:46 Science-Based Global Venture Fund12:26 Deep Tech and Science-Based Startups20:24 Operator Background and Early Stage Founders27:56 Balancing Scientific Ambition with Venture Returns34:51 LP Expectations and Collaboration