CommonAI raises a £16m grant from ARIA to launch the Scaling Inference Lab
ARIA led a £16m grant to establish a new inference lab for AI scale-ups.
CommonAI develops shared AI infrastructure to lower costs and widen access for startups and enterprises.
CommonAI has secured a £16m grant led by ARIA to launch the Scaling Inference Lab. The initiative will establish shared infrastructure within live data centre environments to test and optimise AI hardware, software, and operational design. Backed by ARIA, the project aims to reduce inference costs and ease pressure on national computing resources.
The partnership addresses the growing energy and cost challenges associated with running AI models in production. By providing a testbed for researchers and scale-ups, the lab seeks to accelerate the path from academic research to commercial deployment without reliance on big tech infrastructure.
From the founder
"The Scaling Inference Lab creates a practical environment where new AI infrastructure can be tested and proven at system scale. It builds on CommonAI’s vision of shared infrastructure, allowing organisations to innovate without needing the scale or resources of large technology providers. By improving access to efficient, trusted computing platforms, we can help create a more accessible AI ecosystem and unlock greater economic opportunity across the UK."
Andy Hopper
Chairman at CommonAI
Investor perspective
"To reduce compute costs by 1000x, we need to move from theory to delivery. CommonAI is the right partner because their DNA is built on translating research into working, industrial-quality foundations. By leveraging their ability to build and operate shared infrastructure in live settings, combined with a proper institutional framework for collaborative research, we’re giving startups the rigorous, independent platform they need to prove their hardware is ready for the real world."
Suraj Bramhavar
Programme Director, ARIA
Use of funds
- 01Fund research and development
- 02Build out infrastructure
