Deeptech Keysom completes a €4M fundraising and deploys the first "no-code" tool dedicated to the design of tailor-made processors

October 10, 2024 -- Keysom, a deeptech company developing an innovative and “no code” platform for designing tailor-made processor architectures for semiconductor and embedded systems players, announces the closing of a 4 million euro fundraising round. This operation carried out with the French Tech Seed funds, managed on behalf of the State by Bpifrance as part of France 2030, IRDI Investment Capital, Xplore By Épopée Gestion and EuroBIM, will allow the company to accelerate the development of its offer, to strengthen its presence in France and internationally and to recruit new talents.

A unique innovation in the world to meet the energy efficiency needs of electronic chips

General-purpose processors are omnipresent on the market. Offering great versatility, they equip all types of electronic devices, from IoT to the automotive world. Capable of handling a multitude of tasks, these “off-the-shelf” products are the default solution for manufacturers in a hurry to position themselves on the market. However, this general approach presents significant limits in terms of cost, energy efficiency and performance: 50% of the functionalities will never be used during the life of the processor. Well aware of these obstacles, more and more players wish to turn to personalized chips, but are faced with excessively slow and costly development cycles.

A true catalyst for innovation, Keysom responds to this challenge and allows manufacturers to design a tailor-made processor in the space of a few simple and rapid iterations, without any constraints linked to inherent technical development. To this end, with a highly qualified technical team, Keysom devoted 4 years of R&D to develop Keysom Studio, its intelligent and easy-to-use tool capable of exploring, testing, modifying and optimizing a very wide variety of complex architectures in order to arrive at a unique solution each time, entirely adapted to the customer’s needs – without the need for advanced technical skills or a team of experts.

Keysom thus opens a new era for manufacturers, putting within their reach the design of more efficient, more economical and more ecological tailor-made processors, on both a small and large scale. The launch of this solution marks a turning point for all companies seeking agility and competitiveness.

“Where manufacturers pay for oversized generic processors, which generate costs and energy waste, a custom processor uses less raw material (in this case silicon), leading to lower production costs and simplified manufacturing processes. In a context where demand for semiconductors continues to increase, reducing the silicon area per chip is a major strategic advantage. Our software allows to explore up to 12 million processor combinations to achieve this.” confides Luca Testa – Co-founder & Director of Operations of Keysom

Raising €4M to accelerate sales on an international scale

Supported by the French Tech Seed funds, managed on behalf of the State by Bpifrance as part of France 2030, IRDI Investment Capital, Xplore by Épopée Gestion and EuroBIM, Keysom has just completed a €4M fundraising. This funding round marks a decisive step for Keysom, thus anchoring its position as a technological pioneer in the field of custom processor design.

“This fundraising is an important milestone in our growth strategy. It gives us the means to further accelerate the development of our technology and lead our commercial expansion into new markets. We firmly believe that our no code tool will redefine the way manufacturers approach the design and optimization of their systems. » adds Cyril Sagonero – President of Keysom

Part of the funds will be dedicated to the recruitment of new R&D technical experts, in order to continue to innovate and improve the performance of hardware and software solutions, as well as to the recruitment of qualified commercial profiles. With the support of its investors, Keysom aspires to continue offering solutions that transform the industry while keeping in mind the democratization of the access to high-tech tools for as many people as possible.

“On behalf of the State, Bpifrance actively participates in the reindustrialization of France and works for the sovereignty of the country by supporting companies in strategic sectors. We are happy to be alongside the deeptech company Keysom, whose talented teams and custom processor design technology promise a real revolution in industrial electronics. » adds François Charbonnier, Investment Director at Bpifrance.

“We are delighted to support the Keysom team in this kick-off sales phase because we are convinced that Keysom makes it possible to provide an innovative, sovereign solution with a limited carbon impact to industrial players, many of whom need processors. » Camille Le Roux Larsabal, VC Associate at Epopée Gestion.

“In addition to the elements already cited by my colleagues – disruptive innovation, technical excellence and environmental impact – I would add that Keysom is a company with strong local roots, in the Nouvelle Aquitaine region. We are convinced that the managers have all the qualities to make this startup an important player both locally and internationally. » Vincent Brousse, Investment Director at IRDI Investment Capital.

About Keysom

In 2019, Cyril Sagonero and Luca Testa are beginning to question the market approach of buying off-the-shelf processors in order to reduce time to market. The waste of area and energy consumption is huge. At the same time, version 2.2 of the RISC-V ISA is frozen, opening the door to this new ISA to the industry. The following year, discussions with PhD Jérémie Crenne of the University of Bordeaux and software architecture expert Fabrice Bonnet laid the foundations for Keysom, a French startup which aims to enable semiconductor companies to automatically and simply obtain the RISC-V processor best suited to their needs. In 2022 Keysom is developing the world’s first coding-free tool dedicated to the design of custom processors.

About Bpifrance and the French Tech Seed fund:

Bpifrance finances companies – at each stage of their development – ​​with credit, guarantees and equity. Bpifrance supports them in their innovation projects and internationally. Bpifrance also ensures their export activity through a wide range of products. Consulting, university, networking and acceleration program for start-ups, SMEs and mid-sized companies are also part of the offer presented to entrepreneurs.

Thanks to Bpifrance and its 50 regional locations, entrepreneurs benefit from a close, unique and efficient contact to help them face their challenges.

Endowed with 500 million euros, the French Tech Seed Fund aims to support fundraising by innovative start-ups and VSEs less than 3 years old carrying out technologically intensive innovation. Resulting from the Future Investment Program (PIA), now integrated into France 2030 and operated on behalf of the State by Bpifrance, the fund is based on certified business providers, responsible for identifying and qualifying these young companies and put them in touch with private investors. These business providers, ensuring the technological validity of the project, will allow public investment, in the form of Convertible Bonds of up to 400 million euros, in addition to the capital provided by private investors. 100 million euros are also dedicated to equity investments in addition to the conversion of Convertible Bonds.

More info on: www.Bpifrance.fr – https://presse.bpifrance.fr / – Follow-us on X (formerly Twitter): @Bpifrance – @BpifrancePresse

About IRDI Investment Capital

IRDI Investment Capital has been one of the leaders in regional investment capital for 40 years. Working in New Aquitaine and Occitanie, we support companies at all stages of their development (Startup, Venture Capital, Development Capital / Transmission). Since its creation, IRDI Investment Capital has financed more than 1,000 local companies and today manages assets of more than 550 million euros through funds dedicated to each practice. Our teams are located in Bordeaux, Toulouse and Montpellier. IRDI Investment Capital carried out this operation via its IRDINOV 3 fund, dedicated to deeptech subjects.

To learn more about IRDI: www.irdi.fr, and to follow the news: LinkedIn, Twitter.

About Xplore by Epopée Gestion

Xplore is the innovation capital brand of Épopée Gestion, the investment company co-founded by Charles Cabillic and Ronan Le Moal in 2020.

It brings together all the financing, operational support and acceleration expertise of the management company to boost innovation in the territories. Xplore is located in Brest, Bordeaux, Nantes and Paris, close to ecosystems and those who innovate to help them reach new horizons.

About the France 2030 investment plan:

• Reflects a double ambition: sustainably transform key sectors of our economy (health, energy, automotive, aeronautics and even space) through technological innovation, and position France not only as a player, but as a leader in the world of tomorrow. From fundamental research, to the emergence of an idea to the production of a new product or service, France 2030 supports the entire life cycle of innovation until its industrialization.
• Is unprecedented in its scale: €54 billion will be invested so that our companies, our universities, our research organizations, fully succeed in their transitions in these strategic sectors. The challenge: to enable them to respond competitively to the ecological and attractiveness challenges of the coming world, and to bring out the future leaders of our sectors of excellence. France 2030 is defined by two transversal objectives consisting of devoting 50% of its expenditure to the decarbonization of the economy, and 50% to emerging players, carriers of innovation without expenditure unfavourable to the environment (in the sense of the Do No principle Meaning Harm).
• Is implemented collectively: designed and deployed in consultation with economic, academic, local and European stakeholders to determine strategic directions and key actions. Project leaders are invited to submit their application via open, demanding and selective procedures to benefit from State support.
• Is managed by the General Secretariat for Investment on behalf of the Prime Minister and implemented by the Ecological Transition Agency (ADEME), the National Research Agency (ANR), Bpifrance, and the Caisse des Dépôts et Consignations (CDC).

More information on: france2030.gouv.fr @SGPI_avenir