Revolutionizing the Tangible World: The Emergence of Eclipse Ventures
A Forward-Thinking Vision in Tech Investment
When Lior Susan founded Eclipse Ventures in 2015, the idea of digitizing physical industries was still a niche concept within Silicon Valley.At a time when enterprise software adn SaaS dominated innovation conversations, focusing on the fusion of hardware and software felt like an unconventional path.
overcoming Early Obstacles to Become an Industry Trailblazer
In the years since its inception, Eclipse has grown into a key influencer in technology investment circles. A defining milestone was their $6.5 million Series A funding round for Cerebras Systems in 2016. This semiconductor company’s recent IPO yielded an remarkable $2.5 billion return for Eclipse, representing a 17-fold increase based on shares priced at $185 after total investments reached $147 million.
The Vast Untapped Value Within Physical Industries
Susan’s insight is grounded in the fact that nearly 85% of global GDP is tied to physical assets and infrastructure rather than purely digital services. This understanding fuels his conviction that startups operating at the intersection of hardware and software present significant financial opportunities beyond conventional SaaS enterprises.
The Evolving Market Landscape Favoring Hardware-Software Synergy
Investor interest increasingly reflects this shift as companies such as TSMC and Micron hit record market valuations amid surging demand for semiconductor technologies. moreover, more entrepreneurs are launching ventures that integrate smart devices with sophisticated software platforms.
“The advantage once held by proprietary code is fading; today anyone can rapidly develop software,” Susan noted.
This observation aligns with broader trends where many SaaS stocks have experienced downward pressure due to concerns that enterprises might use AI tools like Anthropic’s Claude or OpenAI’s latest models to build custom internal applications instead of relying on external vendors.
The Unique Challenges Inherent to Hardware Manufacturing
Unlike software development-which can be quickly duplicated-manufacturing semiconductors requires highly specialized equipment, ultra-clean environments, and complex supply chains that cannot be easily replicated or replaced by AI alone.
Diverse Industries Powering Growth Beyond Semiconductors
Eclipse’s investments span far beyond chips into sectors such as robotics, energy innovation, and defence technologies-fields which collectively attracted nearly $15 billion from outside investors last year alone. In just Q1 2026 thes areas secured over $4.5 billion in funding rounds-a stark contrast compared to under $4 billion raised across all portfolio companies during Eclipse’s first eight years combined.
- nuro: Raised $1 billion advancing autonomous delivery vehicles;
- Sensiv: Secured $700 million developing next-generation environmental sensors;
- Kinetic Robotics: Obtained $300 million focused on automating warehouse operations;
- cobalt Systems: Garnered $250 million innovating data center infrastructure solutions.
Eclipse played a critical role as Series A investor for each company above-demonstrating its ability to identify promising early-stage ventures poised for substantial late-stage growth.
The Four Foundations driving Physical-Tech Innovation Beyond AI
Susan stresses that while artificial intelligence remains vital-whether enhancing chip design or enabling smarter robotics-the ecosystem depends on more than technological breakthroughs alone for sustainable expansion:
- Adequate Funding: Venture capital shifting focus from saturated saas markets toward tangible technology sectors;
- Catalytic Market Demand: Industries seeking integrated hardware-software solutions aimed at boosting operational efficiency;
- An Experienced Talent Pool: Engineers redirecting efforts toward robotics, semiconductors, space exploration tech, and mining innovations;
- A Supportive Policy Surroundings:Government incentives including subsidies and regulatory frameworks encouraging domestic manufacturing capabilities reminiscent of historic industrial booms led by pioneers like Henry Ford and Andrew Carnegie.
“For innovators dedicated to transforming industries deeply connected with physical infrastructure,” Susan remarked,“this may well be America’s most advantageous era ever.”
A Modern Industrial Renaissance Fueled by Technological Progress
This convergence not only opens lucrative avenues but also signals strategic shifts reshaping value creation worldwide-from smart factories deploying collaborative robots (cobots) which have boosted productivity by over 30%, to cutting-edge clean energy storage systems revolutionizing grid reliability across continents today.
