Singapore's Nexstrom raises $12 million to bring 2D chips to fabs

For decades, chipmakers have shrunk silicon transistors to make semiconductors faster, but smaller transistors make it harder to control electron flow, worsening problems like leakage, power loss, and heat. Nexstrom, a startup incubated by Xora Innovation, is betting that two-dimensional (2D) materials can solve that problem instead, particularly as the global component shortage driven by data-center demand shows no signs of easing.

The Singapore-based company builds equipment and processes that let foundries manufacture extremely thin semiconductors, called transition-metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), directly on chip wafers. TMDs aren’t literally two-dimensional — they’re grouped with other “2D materials” because they’re just a few atomic layers thick, a trait that has drawn chipmakers looking to shrink chips further. Nexstrom’s product, North Star, is designed to grow TMDs directly on 300mm (12-inch) wafers used in commercial chipmaking.

Nexstrom isn’t alone in pursuing 2D semiconductors: TSMC, Intel, and Belgium’s IMEC are all developing ways to integrate 2D materials into transistors, while equipment and materials companies such as AIXTRON and CDimension, along with several startups, are tackling other parts of the manufacturing chain. TSMC, ASML, and IMEC recently showed how 2D-material transistors could be used in a 300mm integration process.

Nexstrom’s technology draws in part on research by co-founder and chief scientist Lance Li, who previously led research on post-silicon electronics at TSMC and has worked on 2D materials since 2012. “In the lab, people can get very small, high-quality materials, but only on a very small scale,” Li told TechCrunch. “This is exactly the gap Nexstrom is addressing.”

The company said on Tuesday it raised the $12 million seed round from investors including Xora, Foothill Ventures, and SEEDS, bringing its total funding to $15 million. Rather than compete with chipmaking giants like TSMC, Samsung, and Intel, Nexstrom wants to sell its technology to them or partner with them; it says some companies are already testing samples of its wafers and materials, though it declined to name them.

Still, several problems remain before such tiny semiconductors can be manufactured at scale, chief among them consistently growing TMDs across a full-size wafer. CEO Phoebe Tan said the company has systematically scaled from 2 inches to 6 inches and expects to complete its 8-inch process by the end of October, using a 12-inch system that has just been installed. The funding will also go toward improving process control and measurement, expanding the team, and supporting qualification programs with potential customers. Nexstrom expects its equipment to be ready for commercial production between 2030 and 2035.

Why it matters

Nexstrom’s bet on selling to, rather than competing with, chipmaking incumbents mirrors how equipment specialists have historically profited from industry-wide shifts — if 2D materials become the next lever for shrinking chips, the startups that supply the manufacturing tools stand to gain regardless of which fab wins.