Intel is significantly investing in the development of chips and associated architectures for the forthcoming era of computing. Today, the company announced an acquisition designed to strengthen its capabilities and concentrate on a key area of future technology: artificial intelligence.

The leading semiconductor manufacturer revealed its purchase of SigOpt, a San Francisco-based startup that has created an optimization platform for improved modeling and simulations – both crucial applications of AI technology. SigOpt was previously described as a company dedicated to “optimizing everything” during its Series A funding round. Intel plans to integrate this technology into its AI business, specifically its AI Analytics Toolkit, according to a company representative.

The financial details of the acquisition have not been made public. However, SigOpt already served a substantial number of large organizations – “SigOpt’s customer base includes Fortune 500 companies across industries, as well as leading research institutions, universities and consortiums using its products” – despite its product remaining in a closed beta phase. The company had secured funding from notable investors including In-Q-Tel (the CIA’s strategic investment firm), Andreessen Horowitz, and Y Combinator, raising under $10 million in total.

The intention is to maintain service for current SigOpt users and to further develop the platform. SigOpt’s co-founders, Scott Clark (CEO) and Patrick Hayes (CTO), along with their team, will be joining Intel.

“We will continue to support SigOpt’s existing customers and incorporate the technology into our product development plans,” a spokesperson affirmed.

As Intel focuses on streamlining its operations around next-generation chips to enhance its competitiveness against companies like Nvidia (which is expanding through the acquisition of ARM) and other emerging players, it recognizes a valuable opportunity to offer services alongside its hardware. These services will specifically assist customers in managing the computational demands of running applications on Intel’s chips.

Intel’s strategic emphasis is on the next generation of computing to counteract declines in its established businesses. While the company recently exceeded expectations, its last quarterly report showed a 3% revenue decrease, primarily due to a downturn in its data center business. Intel projects the AI silicon market to exceed $25 billion by 2024, with AI silicon within the data center reaching over $10 billion during that timeframe.

In 2019, Intel reported approximately $3.8 billion in revenue driven by AI. The company anticipates that tools like SigOpt’s will stimulate further growth in this sector, aligning with the increasing demand for AI applications across diverse industries.

“In this new intelligence era, AI is fueling the computational requirements of the future. It is increasingly vital for software to automatically maximize compute performance while scaling AI models,” stated Raja Koduri, Intel’s chief architect and senior vice president of its discrete graphics division. “SigOpt’s AI software platform and data science expertise will enhance Intel’s software, architecture, product offerings, and teams, and provide us with valuable customer insights. We are pleased to welcome the SigOpt team and its customers to Intel.”

This acquisition demonstrates a trend of larger companies consolidating specialized services around their core businesses, providing startups with a broader reach – even if that reach is limited to customers utilizing Intel hardware.

“We are thrilled to become part of Intel and accelerate our mission to expedite and amplify the impact of modelers everywhere. By integrating our AI optimization software with Intel’s long-standing leadership in AI computing and machine learning performance, we will unlock entirely new AI capabilities for modelers,” said Clark in a prepared statement.