At the 2021 Websummit we speak with Albert Liu Ph.D and founder from Kneron. Liu expects the shortages on the semiconductor markets to keep on staying for a long time. These shortages are caused by: political issues and the Covid-19 pandemic. The whole semiconductor supply chain is suffering from thes problems. Because of these shortages Liu expects the prices of semi conductors to keep on rising.

Kneron is a San Diego based technology company that was founded in 2015. It develops both hardware and software products, which are used in smart devices to run and power AI applications. Kneron is a single port of call for device manufacturers who want to integrate AI into their products. The products include hardware such as AI chips and software such as AI models, that device manufacturers can use in everything from autonomous cars, all the way down to a smart fridge, doorbell, or any Internet of Things device.

Kneron primarily solves three main problems for smart devices running AI — security, energy efficiency and cost, thereby enabling AI everywhere and for everyone. Kneron’s solutions are reconfigurable, and will be as efficient at processing image and audio AI models in the future as they are now. It has raised over $100mn to date and is backed by Horizons Ventures, Alibaba, Qualcomm, Sequoia, and more.