In Toronto and Waterloo, Ontario, Astrus, an AI startup focusing on developing the world's initial physics-aware foundation model for chip design, disclosed raising $8 million USD in funding. The funding round was spearheaded by Khosla Ventures and also included contributions from Pradeep Sindhu, the founder of Juniper Networks, as well as 1517 Fund, Drive Capital, Alumni Ventures, and several other strategic investors. The company is addressing the challenge posed by the analog segment in sophisticated semiconductor design, which hasn't seen the same level of automation as digital chip design.