AI startups supported at the NVIDIA Inception Awards

The awards will take place at the GPU Technology Conference (GTC) Europe on 10th October, 2018 in Munich.

The German semiconductor company is working with Silicon Valley AI specialist NVIDIA to select the finalists from over 130 startups who have entered the Inception Awards. In the course of several preliminary rounds, fledgling entrepreneurs from around the world have presented their business models to a jury whose members include AI experts from Infineon. Finalists will compete in an exciting live pitch in front of a judging panel at GTC Europe in Munich.

Oliver Henning, Head of Partnership Management in the Power Management & Multimarket Division of Infineon, stated: “As one of the world’s leading providers of sensing technology, Infineon naturally empowers the application of AI by enabling things to see, hear and understand their environment. Our sensors precisely capture the data processed by learning AI networks. Therefore our sensors such as MEMS microphones and radar are the ears and eyes of the neural network.”

Deep learning systems, in which large amounts of data are used to train machines to perform a specific task, have become reality thanks to the availability of big data, improvements in algorithms, and advancements in computing power. The more effectively such systems are able to acquire and process data from sensors, the better they become at their assigned task.

This requires powerful computing capabilities, backed by reliable and efficient power supplies for servers and critical infrastructures, such as 5G for the ever-increasing volume of data. With its XENSIV sensors, power semiconductors or OPTIGA hardware-based security solutions, Infineon provides intelligent, energy-efficient and secure IoT solutions, for autonomous driving, smart cities and devices, and Industry 4.0.

About the competition

Together with NVIDIA, Infineon whittled down over 130 applicants to reach a shortlist of the 60 most promising startups. These companies then presented at a number of pitch events held in London, Paris and Munich. The judges, including Infineon representatives, met the founders in person and familiarised themselves with the business models of each company. Ten finalists will be selected to present at GTC Europe in October, and the winner will be chosen by a specialist jury of investors and GPU Venture experts to receive $100,000 and a DGX Station personal AI supercomputer.