Notebook
Q&A with CuspAI founder Chad Edwards
The Purpose-Driven Leader who Built CuspAI to a $2.6B Valuation in Two Years
By Georgia Ritter
esterday CuspAI announced their fundraise of $450M, at a $2.6B valuation. The round was led by Kleiner Perkins and NEA, with significant participation from Bezos Expeditions. Giant backed CuspAI at seed just two years ago - and has invested six times overall.
This Series B funding comes less than a year after their $100M+ Series A. Their growth is a clear sign that the UK can compete on the frontier of technology and deliver impact on the world. CuspAI was recently named the top rising AI company not just in the UK, but in all of Europe.
CuspAI’s mission is to deliver the breakthrough materials needed to power human progress. Humanity's story has always been carved and shaped by the materials we use, and the opportunities that each material discovery created. The discovery of bronze created the first durable tools, ending the stone age. The discovery of steel 200 years ago created the foundations behind modern cities. Silicon was the foundation of the microchip - enabling the phones and laptops you are reading this on today.
Each discovery fundamentally reshaped civilisation and the human experience on earth. It will be the materials we haven’t discovered yet that will define the next decade of energy, industry and intelligence. CuspAI's customers already include ASML (semiconductors), Hyundai Motor Group (sustainable energy), and Nasdaq-listed Kemira (removing forever chemicals from water).
“Thank you to Giant for making this possible and your incredible support and mentorship throughout. We’re forever indebted.”
We are excited to be backing CuspAI again, a team led by values-driven and relentless leaders. If Cusp realises its potential it will not just provide useful new inputs to industrial customers, it will reshape industry entirely: creating miracle materials that are 100x better that will completely reinvent the art of the possible in the physical economy.
Reflecting on the journey so far, Tommy Stadlen, Giant Co-Founder said: “Chad is that rare thing: a world-class scientist with real commercial savviness and innate leadership skills. The talent density at Cusp is phenomenal. We always look for talent magnets at Giant - this is one of the best examples I’ve seen. Chad and Max have attracted the world’s best AI engineers and leaders - from Apple’s longtime former AI chief, to some of Google DeepMind’s most respected researchers. The deep sense of mission to use AI as a force for good allows Cusp to tempt away some of Silicon Valley’s highest paid people.” We spoke to Chad Edwards, Co-Founder and CEO, about his principles, growth, and motivations for founding CuspAI.
What is a physics process that defines the way you see the world?
"I always draw parallels between entropy - a measure of uncertainty or disorder in a system - and the chaos within a startup. A lot of disorder takes place inside a startup, and as CEO I’m there to try and reduce this entropy as much as I can. But ultimately, as human beings we have finite energy, and we need to spend it on the few things that are really going to make a difference. It’s a challenge, but one I love."
What is a leadership idea you subscribe to, that other people might be surprised by?
“I try to stay open minded and allow myself to be challenged by those around me. I’m fortunate to be surrounded by very smart people who aren’t afraid to question the status quo. I’ve also had some great leadership inspirations over the years - from a first biology teacher who sparked my love of science, to former BP Chief Executive Lord John Brown who’s a member of our advisory board and is the most modest leader I know - I really admire that about him.”
You could have kept this science in a lab - but you chose to turn it into a company. Why? What is your vision for how frontier science can collaborate with frontier technology?
“Creating novel materials from the atomic scale up is an immense challenge and one that R&D teams have been working on for years. What CuspAI can achieve with our technology can make the most impact in the world through close partnership with industry. In fact, we’ve just launched the AI Materials Foundry, bringing together over 45 leading players in one network that unites high quality data, top labs, industrial partners with domain knowledge, computers and our platform. This is a new paradigm for how materials science will be progressed and commercialised.”
Giant invests in high performance founders. What habits or mindset decisions have allowed you to have the ability to scale CuspAI to this point?
“Tenacity. When I know something is right in my gut, I’m not very good at taking no for an answer! I’ve found that more often than not there’s a workaround - especially when you have such a brilliant, mission-driven team behind you. The whole CuspAI team has got us to where we are now in such a short space of time, and we’re scaling rapidly.”
CEO Chad Edwards has an inspiring backstory, starting in the valleys of Wales - read more in https://www.giant.vc/notebook/its-time-to-unleash-british-dynamism, originally for The Times.
