Silicon Data raises $30M to build a pricing benchmark for AI compute
Startup Silicon Data has closed a $30 million Series A funding round aiming to become the reference price for GPU rental and the basis for futures contracts on the CME. The company plans to launch compute futures trading on October 5th, pending regulatory approval.
The buildout of artificial intelligence infrastructure continues at a rapid pace, and computing power — GPUs and data center capacity — has become the largest cost item for companies building AI products. Hundreds of billions of dollars are poured into the sector annually, yet there has so far been no clear way to establish a price for compute or to hedge against its fluctuations.
Addressing this gap is the goal of startup Silicon Data, which recently closed a $30 million Series A funding round. The company aims to become the reference point for GPU rental pricing and to build an index against which Wall Street futures contracts could settle.
The company plans to launch trading of its compute futures on the CME on October 5th, pending the necessary regulatory approval.
Industry context
The topic was also discussed on TechCrunch's Equity podcast, where host Rebecca Bellan spoke with Silicon Data's head of research, Steve Hou, about the current state of the AI infrastructure industry. According to Hou, the data points to a picture that differs from the gloomier headlines often seen in the media about depreciating chips and stalled data center projects.
