Silicon Catalyst
An Accelerator Created Just for Semiconductor Startups

Dan Armbrust, Co-Founder and Director,Pete Rodriguez, CEO

Numerous investors and analysts believe that the sector is suffering from a funding "moat" issue, which prevents capital from flowing in due to a lack of transparency and risk associated with semiconductors. More than funds, however, these companies need support and direction in their early years, which has been the mission of Silicon Catalyst since launching in 2015.

To date, Silicon Catalyst has screened over 800 startups and created a portfolio of companies worth more than $1.5 billion. Silicon Catalyst also boasts an extensive network of 300+ investors and advisors who are semiconductor veterans with deep experience in the industry.

“Our investors and advisors help startups carve a path to success by providing guidance on business planning market fit, understanding the customer environment and building a winning team,” says Pete Rodriguez, CEO of Silicon Catalyst. “Companies in our incubator receive millions of dollars of in-kind products and services, at no-cost or at a significantly reduced rate from their standard fees.

Silicon Catalyst is not just another accelerator. It takes a keen interest in every startup it selects for its incubation program. That is why the company considers itself a partner that helps entrepreneurs turn their dreams into reality. “We’re extremely excited to have formed an alliance with Mayfield, the legendary venture capital firm for the semiconductor industry, as they will invest capital and provide mentoring to the majority of seed stage companies admitted to our incubator,”, stated Pete Rodriguez.

Other than investors and advisors, the firm has a thriving strategic partner ecosystem made up of big names in the semiconductor industry, including Arm, Bosch, NXP, Sony Semiconductor Solutions, ST, TI and collaborates with other incubators, including Luminate, focused on optics, photonics and imaging. Silicon Catalyst also has an array of partners—called In-Kind Partners (IKP)—that offer highly discounted goods and services for Silicon Catalyst to distribute to its startups that have joined their incubator.

To add perspective, MathWorks is one of the more than 60 Silicon Catalyst IKPs that allows companies in the incubator to use its products free of cost during the 24-month incubation period. With such a strong network of advisors and partners, Silicon Catalyst has incubated companies that are fuelling the next generation of semiconductor innovations.

Salience Labs www.saliencelabs.ai is one such firm in the Silicon Catalyst 24-month program, that is building a hybrid photonic-electronic chip for AI. The startup is based on decades of research collaboration between Oxford University and the University of Münster, Germany. Silicon Catalyst has played a significant role in incubating the UK-based startup, giving it the much-needed exposure and resources to make its mark in the industry. The relationship panned out quite well for the startup, as it has now raised a seed round of $11.5 million to continue building high-speed multi-chip processors to accelerate exponential advances in AI.

Finding such innovative and capable companies is Silicon Catalyst’s primary focus. That is why the firm has helped launch the Silicon Catalyst Angels investment group, which provides seed and Series A funding to semiconductor startups. It has over 50 accredited investors who conduct comprehensive due diligence to select and provide early-stage investments to help the startups get off the ground.
Silicon Catalyst takes immense pride in its team of highly talented people that start from co-founder and former CEO, Dan Armbrust. He is one of the official members of the Industrial Advisory Committee of the Department of Commerce, as part of the CHIPS for America Act, that advises the White House on semiconductor innovation. It should be noted that Dan is a coauthor of a recently published 2-part article in the Georgetown Public Policy Review, “America’s lead in advanced computing is almost gone.”

The coming years for Silicon Catalyst will be exciting, to say the least. The firm has already expanded its footprint offshore, opening offices in the UK and Israel. It is also planning to increase its pool of incubation programs to 250 startups by 2025. However, one thing that will remain unchanged, is the passion and determination of Silicon Catalyst to find promising startups and help them become the next big thing in the semiconductor industry.