Computing Startup Lightmatter Reaches $4.4 Billion Valuation

Lightmatter Inc., a startup making computing products that use light in place of electricity, has raised a new round of funding that almost quadruples its valuation to $4.4 billion.

The company, which aims to overhaul the market for artificial intelligence computing power using the still-early technology, said Wednesday that it brought in $400 million in a Series D financing, led by new investor T. Rowe Price Associates. Existing investors such as GV, formerly known as Google Ventures, also participated in the round, the company said.

Lightmatter builds novel ways for computer chips to communicate with each other and complete calculations. Its technology uses ...