Venture-birthed semiconductor AI company, SixSense, secures $8.5 million in funding from investors.
In the world of semiconductors, precision is key. However, inspection processes remain largely manual and fragmented, according to Avni Agarwal, CEO of Singapore-based deep tech startup SixSense.
Founded in 2018 by engineers Akanksha Jagwani (CTO) and Avni Agarwal, SixSense has developed an AI-powered platform that predicts and detects chip defects in real time. The platform's target customers are large-scale chipmakers, including foundries, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test providers (OSATs), and integrated device manufacturers (IDMs).
SixSense's AI platform is currently in use at major semiconductor manufacturers like GlobalFoundries and JCET, with over 100 million chips processed to date. Customers have reported up to 30% faster production cycles, a 1-2% boost in yield, and a 90% reduction in manual inspection work.
The platform provides engineers with early warnings to address potential issues before they escalate, with capabilities such as defect detection, root cause analysis, and failure prediction. Most fabs today only display data without further analysis, and the burden of using it for decision-making still falls on engineers, who must manually spot patterns, investigate anomalies, and trace root causes.
SixSense's platform is designed to be used by process engineers rather than data scientists, allowing them to fine-tune models using their own fab data, deploy them in under two days, and trust the results without writing a single line of code. Akanksha Jagwani, with experience building automation solutions for manufacturers like Hyundai Motors and GE, and leading product development at startups like Embibe, is instrumental in this design philosophy.
The startup recently secured $8.5 million in Series A funding, bringing its total funding to around $12 million. The funding round was led by Peak XV's Surge, with participation from Alpha Intelligence Capital, FEBE, and others. This investment will accelerate growth and expansion targeting regions including Malaysia, Taiwan, Israel, and the U.S.
The geopolitical tensions, especially between the U.S. and China, are reshaping where chips are made, driving new manufacturing investments across the globe. This trend could be a tailwind for SixSense as it aims to convert raw production data into real-time insights to help factories prevent quality issues and improve yield.
SixSense's AI platform will be one of the offerings at the Disrupt 2025 event, where attendees can learn from top voices in tech. The competitive landscape includes in-house engineering teams using tools like Cognex and Halcon, inspection equipment makers integrating AI into their systems, and startups including Landing.ai and Robovision. However, SixSense's focus on user-friendly AI and its demonstrated impact make it a significant innovation in the chip production industry.
- The fintech sector witnessed an investment of $8.5 million in Series A funding for SixSense, a Singapore-based deep tech startup specializing in fintech and artificial-intelligence technologies, aiming to improve the accuracy of chip production.
- As SixSense's AI-powered platform provides early warnings to address potential issues in the chip manufacturing process, it is set to revolutionize the venture-capital landscape and attract more investments in the fintech and deep tech sectors.
- With the increasing interest in leveraging technology like artificial-intelligence and investing in innovative companies such as SixSense, the finance industry stands to benefit significantly from collaborations between fintech, deep tech, and other sectors driving growth and advancements in the market.
