SiPearl
Category: AI Chips / Semiconductors
Develops high-performance, energy-efficient microprocessors (CPUs) for European supercomputers, AI workloads, and cloud infrastructure, aiming to ensure Europe’s technological sovereignty. SiPearl was founded in 2019. The company is led by Philippe Notton. Based in Maisons-Laffitte, France (Headquarters), with subsidiaries in Germany, Spain, and Italy.. Team size: Over 200. Total funding raised: Over €200 million (including equity and public funding). Latest round: Completed Series A round (€113M), consisting of two closings in April 2023 and January 2024.. Key investors include European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund, Bpifrance Large Venture Fund, Arm Holdings plc, Atos, European Investment Bank (EIB).
- Founded
- 2019
- Headquarters
- Maisons-Laffitte, France (Headquarters), with subsidiaries in Germany, Spain, and Italy.
- Team size
- Over 200
- Total funding
- Over €200 million (including equity and public funding)
Value proposition
Delivers secure, sovereign, and power-efficient processors tailored for large-scale HPC and AI applications, reducing Europe's dependency on foreign technology and ensuring data security from the silicon level up.
Products and solutions
Rhea1 – Flagship Arm Neoverse-based CPU designed for exascale supercomputers., Future processor generations targeting hyperscale data centers and generative AI., Comprehensive software stack and development kits (SDKs) to support major HPC/AI frameworks.
Unique value
The only European company developing a native, high-performance computing (HPC) microprocessor. Its focus on energy efficiency and tight integration with the European sovereignty agenda provides a distinct strategic advantage over non-EU competitors.
Target customer
Supercomputing centers, government agencies, research institutions, and cloud service providers requiring sovereign, high-performance, EU-based compute solutions.
Industries served
Supercomputing/HPC, Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning, Government & Public Sector, Defense & Security, Climate Modeling & Scientific Research, Pharmaceutical R&D
Technology advantage
Combines Arm's Neoverse architecture with proprietary IP tailored for EU needs. Deep integration with the European HPC ecosystem (EPI) provides a unique co-design advantage. A multi-foundry strategy with Intel and TSMC ensures supply chain resilience.
How they differentiate
Offers an indigenous European alternative focused solely on CPU design for sovereign infrastructure, leveraging deep integration with pan-European public/private partnerships under the EuroHPC Joint Undertaking.
Main competitors
NVIDIA, AMD, Intel
Key partnerships
European Processor Initiative (EPI) Consortium, Arm Ltd. (Architectural Partner), NVIDIA (for CPU+GPU integration), Intel Foundry Services & TSMC (Multi-foundry manufacturing strategy), European Investment Bank (EIB), Major European research centers (CEA, Jülich, etc.), Open Cosmos (for space applications)
Notable customers
Jülich Supercomputing Centre (for the JUPITER exascale system), European High-Performance Computing Joint Undertaking (EuroHPC JU) member institutions.
Major milestones
First tape-out of the 'Rhea1' processor prototype in Q1 2024., Selected as the core processor for JUPITER, Europe’s first exascale supercomputer., Completed over €200M in total financing, including a €113M Series A round (2024)., Established strategic partnerships with leading foundries (Intel, TSMC) and technology providers.
Growth metrics
Team growth to over 200 employees by 2024; secured flagship design win for Europe's first exascale supercomputer.
Market positioning
A strategic supplier enabling Europe's digital autonomy and data sovereignty, positioned as the key European provider for the HPC and AI processing sector.
Geographic focus
Primarily Europe, with global expansion goals as a trusted provider of secure compute platforms.
Patents and IP
Proprietary processor designs and interconnect technologies optimized for parallel processing, high-bandwidth memory access, and low power consumption.
About Philippe Notton
Philippe Notton is the founder and CEO of SiPearl, a company developing high-performance, energy-efficient European processors for supercomputing and artificial intelligence. He has over 25 years of senior executive experience in the multimedia, semiconductor, and security sectors, having worked for leading companies such as Thomson, Canal+, LSI Logic, STMicroelectronics, and Atos. He was also part of the successful startup MStar Semiconductor, which was acquired by MediaTek for $4 billion. In 2017, he joined Atos to help create the European Processor Initiative (EPI) consortium, and in June 2019, he launched SiPearl as a spin-off from EPI with the support of the European Union.
Official website: https://sipearl.com