Netris raises $15M from a16z to help new AI cloud firms launch faster

In short: Netris raised $15 million from Andreessen Horowitz to help smaller companies set up AI-focused data centers faster.

What happened

Netris, a startup that makes network automation software, has raised a $15 million Series A funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz, also known as a16z.

The company sells software that runs on network switches, which are the boxes that move data around inside a data center (like traffic lights and intersections for internet data). Netris also offers a platform that helps operators automate setup, configuration, and day to day network tasks, so a new data center can start serving customers sooner.

Netris is aimed at “neoclouds,” which are smaller cloud computing providers built around GPU clusters. GPUs are the chips often used to train and run AI systems. According to Netris, getting one of these facilities ready can take months, and every week of delay can mean expensive GPUs sitting unused.

Netris says its system works with common data center networking equipment, including setups used with Nvidia and AMD servers. The company says it is already running in more than 35 GPU clusters worldwide, covering about a million GPUs, with customers including Lightning AI, Foxconn, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Tensorwave, and Telus.

Netris CEO Alex Saroyan told TechCrunch the company is not using AI in this product. He said network changes need to be consistent and repeatable, not creative.

Andreessen Horowitz partner Guido Appenzeller is joining Netris’ board. Netris says it will use the money to hire more engineers and sales staff, support more hardware makers, and add more features.

Why it matters

As more companies try to build AI services, the hard part is often not buying the chips, it is getting the whole system working reliably. Tools that shorten that setup time could reduce costs and increase competition in AI cloud services.

Source: TechCrunch AI