Vertical Semiconductor is an MIT spin-out designing power-management chips made from gallium nitride (GaN) to cut energy losses in AI data centers. Unlike most GaN devices that lay transistors horizontally, the company stacks transistor components vertically, enabling smaller, cooler, and potentially cheaper chips. The technology originated in Professor Tomas Palacios’s research and was advanced by co-founder Joshua Perozek’s doctoral work. Led by CEO Cynthia Liao, the firm plans to ship prototypes later this year and launch commercial products in the following year. By improving the conversion of high-voltage grid power to the low voltages required by Nvidia’s AI accelerators, Vertical aims to slash both wasted heat and operating costs for data-center operators. The startup contends its approach offers step-change efficiency gains rather than incremental improvements. To finance commercialization, the company has secured $11 million in new capital, its first disclosed outside funding.

Total raised

$11M

Funding rounds

1

Latest round

Seed

Latest activity

Oct 2025