A new entrant in the global semiconductor race is drawing attention from investors and industry leaders, as Lace secures $40 million in fresh funding to advance a potentially disruptive chip fabrication technology.
Backed in part by Microsoft, the Norway-headquartered startup is pursuing an alternative to traditional lithography—the decades-old process used by chipmakers like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company and Intel to produce advanced processors. Conventional systems rely on extreme ultraviolet light to etch intricate circuit patterns onto silicon wafers.
That approach is currently dominated by ASML, whose machines underpin nearly all cutting-edge chip production globally. But Lace is attempting to leapfrog the field with a radically different method: lithography using a helium atom beam instead of light.
According to CEO Bodil Holst, the company’s technology could enable chip features up to ten times smaller than what existing systems can achieve. By directing a beam roughly the width of a single hydrogen atom—about 0.1 nanometers—Lace aims to push manufacturing toward what it describes as “atomic resolution.”
For context, ASML’s extreme ultraviolet systems operate at wavelengths around 13.5 nanometers, while a human hair measures roughly 100,000 nanometers across. The dramatic reduction in scale could allow for significantly denser transistor placement, boosting the performance and efficiency of next-generation artificial intelligence chips.
Industry experts are taking note. John Petersen of Imec said the helium beam approach could enable transistor fabrication at an “almost unimaginable” level of miniaturization, potentially extending the limits of current semiconductor roadmaps.
The funding round was led by Atomico, with participation from M12, Linse Capital, Spanish Society for Technological Transformation, and Nysnø.
Headquartered in Bergen, Lace has already developed prototype systems and plans to deploy a test tool in a pilot semiconductor fabrication plant by 2029. The company also recently presented its research at a major lithography conference earlier this year.
As governments and investors increasingly prioritize semiconductor independence and innovation, Lace’s approach reflects a broader push to challenge entrenched players and redefine the technological limits of chip manufacturing.