Fungible has raised $293.0M in total across 3 funding rounds.
Fungible's investors include Alkeon Capital, AME Cloud Ventures, Decibel Partners, Electric Capital, General Catalyst, Hanabi Capital, Hardware Club, Heretic Ventures, Innovation Endeavors, InterWest, Juniper Networks, Operator Collective.
Fungible is a technology company that develops hardware and software platforms, including Data Processing Units (DPUs), to enhance the performance, reliability, and economics of data centers.[1][3][4] It builds programmable microprocessors that act as data traffic controllers, accelerating data-centric workloads by shuttling traffic efficiently between networks, CPUs, and GPUs in cloud environments.[2][3] Fungible serves data center operators and IT industries, solving bottlenecks in data movement with low-latency, high-throughput chips.[1][2] Founded in 2015 in Santa Clara, California, it raised over $300M before being acquired by Microsoft in December 2022 (announced January 2023) to bolster Azure infrastructure.[1][2][3]
Fungible was founded in 2015 by Pradeep Sindhu, co-founder and chief scientist of Juniper Networks, and Bertrand Serlet, former senior vice president of software engineering at Apple.[3] The idea emerged from the founders' deep expertise in networking, silicon, and software, aiming to create a new category of chips for efficient data movement in data centers.[2][3] Early traction came quickly: in 2017, it raised $32M in Series A funding led by Mayfield Fund, Walden Riverwood Ventures, and Battery Ventures; by 2019, a $200M Series C round led by SoftBank Vision Fund brought total funding to around $309M and grew the team to 200 employees.[2][3] Pivotal shifts included appointing Dr. Jai Menon (ex-Dell/IBM CTO) as chief scientist in 2019 and Eric Hayes as CEO in 2021, replacing Sindhu.[3] The company culminated in its 2022 acquisition by Microsoft.[1][3]
Fungible rides the explosive growth of cloud computing and AI-driven data centers, where surging data volumes demand efficient offloading from general-purpose CPUs to specialized processors.[1][3] Its timing aligned perfectly with hyperscalers like Microsoft Azure seeking DPU tech to handle massive inference and storage workloads amid the AI boom.[2][3] Market forces favoring Fungible include the shift to disaggregated infrastructure and edge-to-cloud fabrics, reducing latency and costs in real-time analytics.[1][4] By influencing DPU adoption, it shaped the ecosystem, paving the way for Microsoft's Azure enhancements and inspiring competitors in analog AI chips and AI platforms.[1][3]
Post-acquisition, Fungible's DPU tech will likely deepen integration into Azure, powering next-gen AI workloads and computational storage.[2][3][4] Trends like AI model inference scaling and energy-efficient data centers will amplify its impact, potentially evolving into broader Microsoft hardware plays.[1] As cloud giants consolidate specialized silicon, Fungible's influence could expand ecosystem-wide, transforming data center economics from a startup innovator to a foundational Azure component—echoing its origins in reimagining data movement.[3]
Fungible has raised $293.0M across 3 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $200.0M Series C in June 2019.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 1, 2019 | $200.0M Series C | Alkeon Capital, AME Cloud Ventures, Decibel Partners, Electric Capital, General Catalyst, Hanabi Capital, Hardware Club, Heretic Ventures, Innovation Endeavors, InterWest, Juniper Networks, Operator Collective, Sequoia Capital, Sherpalo Ventures, Y Combinator, Yan-David Erlich | |
| Apr 1, 2017 | $60.0M Series B | Redline Capital | |
| Feb 1, 2017 | $33.0M Series A | Andreessen Horowitz, Autotech Ventures, Aux21 Capital, Bedrock Capital, Bling Capital, CapitalG, ClimacticVC, Dig Ventures, Floodgate, Fontinalis Partners, Gradient Ventures, K9 Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Kompas VC, M13, Mayfield, Practical Venture Capital, Summit Partners, Tribe Capital, Mark Gillespie, Nico Rosberg, Rashaun Williams, Sean Bill, Vikas Sabnani |