There’s truly something special about the Cambridge ecosystem: the density of world-class technical talent is extraordinary, and I strongly believe that category-defining tech can be built right here. We’re expanding fast globally while staying rooted in Cambridge.
Dr. Chad Edwards
Co-Founder and CEO, CuspAI
Cusp AI is defining the next era of materials science, building an AI search engine for materials discovery that unlocks the breakthrough materials needed for the energy transition, clean technologies, and future technologies such as new superconductors.
Founded in Cambridge in 2024 by Dr Chad Edwards and Professor Max Welling, Cusp AI combines generative AI with physics-based simulation to transform how materials are discovered. Its platform can design, test, and optimise new molecular structures in silico, reducing discovery timelines from years to months.
New materials underpin advances in clean energy, carbon capture, water treatment and semiconductor technology, yet traditional materials research is slow, expensive and often relies on trial and error. Without materials that don’t yet exist, industrial progress risks stalling. Cusp AI addresses this bottleneck by enabling scientists to explore vast chemical design spaces at unprecedented speed and scale.
Cusp AI’s platform has already demonstrated real-world impact. In partnership with Finnish chemicals company Kemira, Cusp AI designed materials for removing ‘forever chemicals’ or PFAS from water. Over six months, it screened a search space of approximately 300 trillion potential molecular structures and identified 20 priority candidates for laboratory testing and validation, significantly accelerating the discovery process. This is the first commercial partnership to apply generative AI end-to-end to the design of new materials for PFAS remediation.
Powering the platform is MIRA, Cusp AI’s proprietary generative discovery engine which integrates agentic AI, material generation, simulation, synthesis mapping and physical characterisation into a single workflow. MIRA also drives the AI Materials Foundry, a global coalition launched in 2026 with more than 45 academic and industry partners, including the University of Cambridge’s Department of Materials Science and Metallurgy, Nvidia, Meta and Samsung.
Having raised over $650 million since its founding, including a $450m Series B round in July 2026, Cusp AI has become one of Cambridge’s fastest-growing deep tech companies, reaching unicorn status. By shortening the path from discovery to deployment, Cusp AI is helping unlock breakthrough materials needed to accelerate global decarbonisation, strengthen energy security, and power the next generation of sustainable technologies.
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