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Cornelis Networks

Category: AI Infrastructure

Intel spinout building open, high-performance networking fabrics (Omni-Path) for AI and HPC workloads to reduce GPU idle time and interconnect lock-in. Cornelis Networks was founded in 2020. The company is led by Lisa Spelman. Based in Wayne, Pennsylvania, USA. Team size: 101-500. Total funding raised: $335M. Latest round: Series C. Key investors include IAG Capital Partners (lead), Intel Capital, Adit Ventures, Foresight Group, KittyHawk Ventures, Chestnut Street Ventures, Global Brain, Downing Ventures.

Founded
2020
Headquarters
Wayne, Pennsylvania, USA
Team size
101-500
Total funding
$335M

Value proposition

Open, lossless, congestion-free scale-out and scale-up networking (Omni-Path, Active Compute Fabric) that delivers lower latency and higher GPU utilization than InfiniBand/Ethernet alternatives, without vendor lock-in to Nvidia.

Products and solutions

CN5000 Omni-Path SuperNICs/switches, CN6000 (first 800G multi-protocol SuperNIC supporting Omni-Path, RoCEv2, Ultra Ethernet on PCIe 6.0), Omni-Path Express 100, Active Compute Fabric (open, GPU-agnostic scale-up networking architecture), software stack/libraries for HPC and AI scalability.

Unique value

GPU-agnostic, open-standards interconnect fabric that cuts GPU idle time and offers an alternative to Nvidia's proprietary NVLink/InfiniBand ecosystem, backed by deep fabric engineering pedigree from Intel/QLogic/SilverStorm lineage.

Target customer

Enterprise AI companies, cloud service providers (CSPs), supercomputing centers, government labs, and research institutions.

Industries served

AI infrastructure, high-performance computing, supercomputing, government/defense research, life sciences, finance, autonomous systems.

Technology advantage

Deep fabric engineering heritage (SilverStorm → QLogic → Intel Omni-Path → Cornelis); over 500 global customer installations; 800G SuperNIC technology; open architecture supporting multiple protocols (Omni-Path, RoCEv2, Ultra Ethernet).

How they differentiate

Positions as the open, GPU-agnostic alternative to Nvidia's proprietary interconnect stack, targeting GPU idle-time reduction across heterogeneous hardware rather than locking customers into a single GPU vendor's ecosystem.

Main competitors

Nvidia (NVLink/InfiniBand/Spectrum-X), Broadcom (Ethernet/Tomahawk switches), Astera Labs and Enfabrica (AI interconnect/fabric startups)

Key partnerships

Qualcomm Technologies (strategic collaboration on Active Compute Fabric for AI designs, announced Sept 2026), partnerships with all major OEMs, originally spun out of Intel (with Intel Capital as investor).

Notable customers

Government labs, academic/research institutions, and commercial enterprises (specific named customers not publicly disclosed), over 500 global installations.

Major milestones

2020: Spun out of Intel's Omni-Path business, 2022: $29M Series B, Aug 2024/2025: Lisa Spelman appointed CEO (ex-Intel), June 2025: CN5000 Omni-Path launch, Sept 2026: $205M Series C, Active Compute Fabric launch, Qualcomm collaboration announced at AI Infra Summit.

Growth metrics

Over 500 global customer installations across government, academic, and commercial enterprises; CN5000 Omni-Path launched June 2025; largest reported Philadelphia-area VC round (Sept 2026).

Market positioning

Challenger in the AI/HPC interconnect market, competing against Nvidia's dominant proprietary networking stack and Broadcom's Ethernet-based offerings, with open-standards differentiation.

Geographic focus

Primarily United States (Philadelphia/Wayne, PA HQ) with global deployments across US, government/research institutions, and international enterprise/CSP customers.

Patents and IP

20+ US patents held by co-founder Vladimir Tamarkin related to electronic packaging and high-performance interconnect technology.

About Lisa Spelman

Corporate VP, Data Center & AI Group and GM of Xeon Products and Solutions at Intel Corporation; prior Intel roles in IT infrastructure, finance, data center marketing, and sales. B.A. Business Administration, University of Washington.

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