Swiss nanotechnology startup Chiral has closed a $12 million seed round to support the wafer-scale manufacturing of chips based on nanomaterials such as graphene, transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDs), and hexagonal boron nitride (hBN).

The round was led by Crane Venture Partners and saw participation from Quantonation, HCVC, and Founderful, in addition to public funding from Innosuisse.

Founded in 2023 as an ETH Zurich spin-out, Chiral develops high-precision nanomaterial integration equipment for next-generation quantum and semiconductor applications. According to the company, its robotic nanomaterial integration system uses automation, high-precision engineering, and AI for the robotic integration of nanomaterials into silicon wafers.

“Unlike conventional methods, this approach enables precise, selective, and contamination-free placement of nanomaterials–a clear path from single-device experiments to wafer-scale integration,” Chiral said in a statement.

“Nanomaterials have shown outstanding performance in research for years, but without scalable and controllable manufacturing, their impact remains limited,” said Seoho Jung, CEO at Chiral. “Chiral has the necessary capabilities that can turn material-level breakthroughs into an industrial reality.

“Our customers will soon announce results that demonstrate how Chiral’s technology has advanced their device performance. In parallel, we are moving from development into deployment, with our first commercial systems being installed at customer sites this year.”

Chiral will use the funding to further strengthen its automation, precision, and throughput, further supporting its own transition from “experimental promise” to manufacturable technologies.