Mastiska, a UAE-based fabless semiconductor startup, has raised $10 million in seed funding to advance sovereign AI chip development. The round, backed primarily by Gulf sovereign wealth funds, marks a significant step in the region’s ambition to build independent, secure technology infrastructure for artificial intelligence.
Founded in 2024 by CEO Suresh Sugumar, Mastiska is building a fabless semiconductor company focused on data-center-class inference accelerators. The company’s vision is to create “sovereign silicon” — AI hardware designed and manufactured outside the influence of U.S. or Chinese supply chains. Sugumar explained that while sovereign AI is often associated with data, true sovereignty begins with silicon. By offering customers full audit access for cybersecurity assurance, Mastiska aims to provide transparency and trust in its hardware solutions.
The $10 million seed round will be used to accelerate product development and expand Mastiska’s presence across the GCC, South Asia, BRICS, and the Global South. The company plans to launch commercial FPGA-based PCIe cards featuring up to 96 GB of high-bandwidth memory, targeting data centers and enterprises seeking secure, scalable AI compute solutions. With engineering teams in India and model-creation teams in Abu Dhabi, Mastiska is leveraging a global talent base to deliver cutting-edge chip design while maintaining its UAE headquarters as the hub for sovereign innovation.
Investors view Mastiska’s mission as strategically vital. The backing from GCC sovereign wealth funds signals strong regional support for building independent AI infrastructure. As global regulations increasingly force countries to choose between U.S. and Chinese chip suppliers, Mastiska offers an alternative path that empowers nations to pursue technology independence. Sugumar noted that early skepticism about sovereign AI has given way to recognition of its importance, as organizations now appreciate the need for secure, locally built hardware EE Times.
With this funding, Mastiska is positioning itself at the forefront of the UAE’s sovereign AI ambitions. By combining open-source technologies with advanced chip design, the company aims to redefine how nations approach AI compute, ensuring resilience, transparency, and independence in a rapidly evolving global technology landscape.
