Upscale AI Raises $180M-$200M at $2B Valuation for AI Infrastructure Build

Gate News message, April 17 — Upscale AI, an AI infrastructure startup, is in talks to raise between $180 million and $200 million at a $2 billion valuation, according to TechCrunch. The company previously announced a $100 million seed round in September 2025 and a $200 million Series A in January 2026.

Investors include Tiger Global Management, Xora Innovation, and Premji Invest. Upscale AI has not yet released a product but is focused on building custom chips and the networking infrastructure required for those systems to communicate.

The company is developing AI-native networking based on open standards such as SONiC (an open-source network operating system). CEO Barun Kar previously co-founded Auradine, a startup specializing in internet infrastructure hardware, and served as COO, bringing experience in chip design and systems execution.