U.S. chip startup xLight is in talks to raise $350 million, just weeks after finalizing $150 million in support from the federal government via the CHIPS Act, as it pursues a next-generation EUV light source.
June 2026 · xLight
U.S.-Backed Laser Startup Chases $350M to Reinvent EUV Chipmaking
Weeks after a finalized $150M CHIPS Act award, Palo Alto-based xLight — chaired by former Intel CEO Pat Gelsinger — is in talks for a $350M private round to push its Free Electron Laser light source toward a 2028 silicon demonstration.
$350M
Private round now under discussion
$150M
CHIPS Act award, finalized as a U.S. equity stake
~$200M
Cumulative funding raised to date
Output ambition: more than 4× current EUV sources
FEL target vs. today's laser-produced plasma source — light power, drawn to scale.
+50–100%
Throughput: existing fab → new fab
0
Tin or hydrogen consumables needed
The Utility Model
Utility-scale FEL outside the fab
→
EUV light distributed as a "utility"
→
Feeds existing ASML scanners
First system to be built and demonstrated at the Albany Nanotech Complex, NY — targeting a silicon wafer demonstration around 2028 .
THE CASE FOR
Could cut dependence on ASML's dominant light source
Higher power, lower cost, no tin consumables
Brings advanced chipmaking back under U.S. leadership
THE CAUTION
Still a prototype — first unit under construction, no commercial use
Doubts over government taking an equity stake
Feasibility of accelerator-scale facilities unproven
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