Having a strong idea is just the start. For early-stage AI startups, the real work begins with turning that idea into a product that performs, integrates, and holds up in real-world use. Intel® Liftoff for Startups is built to support that shift.
Intel® Liftoff is Intel’s global program for AI startups - offering direct access to compute resources, technical mentorship, and go-to-market support, all built on the Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud.
“Intel® Liftoff is not just a program, it’s an ecosystem. Our goal is to be the first point of contact for AI startups and open the door to the entire Intel universe; from edge to cloud, from hardware to research.” - Eugenie Wirz, Program Lead, Intel® Liftoff.
A Program Built to Scale AI Innovation
Intel® Liftoff helps startups grow through three foundational pillars:
- Tech Mentorship — One-on-one guidance from Intel AI engineers to optimize and scale AI workloads across Intel CPUs, GPUs, and Gaudi AI accelerators.
- Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud Access — Startups receive credits and early access to Intel’s AI-optimized cloud infrastructure to run real-world workloads at scale.
- Go-to-Market Exposure — Co-marketing through technical blogs, event showcases, and social amplification via Intel’s global channels.
“We built Liftoff to level the playing field—so even the smallest startup can access the same cutting-edge hardware, tools, and expertise as our biggest enterprise partners.” - Rahul U. Nair, AI Lead, Intel® Liftoff.
Startups engage in two flexible tracks:
- Community Track – For startups exploring Intel's ecosystem, with access to resources, a vibrant virtual community, and Intel® Liftoff Days, our developer sprints for hands-on experimentation with Intel engineers.
- Catalyst Track – For selected startups ready to collaborate on high-impact projects, with dedicated tech mentorship and full deployment on the Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud.
TurinTech: From Code Complexity to Optimized Performance
Technical challenge
Improving performance in AI code that’s already been heavily optimized.
Intel collaboration
Used Intel® Gaudi® and Intel® Xeon® via the Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud to benchmark, analyze, and deploy.
TurinTech AI, based in the UK, built Artemis - a platform that uses LLMs and agents to tune code for speed, quality, and efficiency. When they joined Intel® Liftoff, the goal was clear: prove Artemis could push performance further, even on models that were already finely tuned.
Intel’s AI engineers worked directly with TurinTech to benchmark OpenAI’s Whisper model on Intel® Xeon® CPUs, identify bottlenecks, and apply Artemis-guided improvements. The result: a 25% performance boost, submitted as a verified pull request to the open-source repo.
“Many organizations are hesitant to send their code to unknown clouds. With Intel, we can offer our customers a trusted, high-performance environment to safely deploy and optimize AI applications.” - Mike Basios, CTO, TurinTech.
Their journey included testing across architectures and real-time deployment on the Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud, showcasing how developers can combine code-level intelligence with hardware-aware execution.
TurinTech’s AI demo at Intel Vision 2025:
Parawave: Bringing AI to Life-Saving Drone Missions
Technical challenge
Real-time object detection and alerting from live drone video with ultra-low latency.
Intel collaboration
Scaled vision inference using Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud for emergency response.
Parawave, based in Columbus, Ohio, built Shepherd AI - a system that monitors drone video in real time to flag threats and incidents. It’s designed to ease the mental load on first responders when every second counts.
They used the Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud to run their video streaming engine and detection models. With guidance from Intel’s technical mentors, they streamlined deployment, improved compute efficiency, and brought detection latency below two seconds.
Thanks to the Intel® Tiber™Cloud, we dropped our AI detection latency to just two seconds. That speed can save lives in the field.” - Jack Murray, Co-founder, Parawave.
Intel also helped Parawave explore future expansion paths, from GPU-based scaling to potential edge deployment on Intel-powered controllers for use in offline environments.
Co-Creation That Builds Value
Intel® Liftoff isn’t about passive support - it’s a collaborative building process. Intel engineers and startup founders work side-by-side to design, test, and refine AI solutions.
When we identify a Catalyst startup, we go all-in. Our goal is to create outcomes that drive technical value for the startup—and strategic learnings for Intel.” - Desmond Grealy, AI Lead, Intel® Liftoff.
This co-creation model is what turns prototypes into products, and ideas into impact.
A Platform to Launch, Learn, and Lead
The journeys of TurinTech and Parawave show how the right ecosystem unlocks a startup’s full potential. With the Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud at the center, and Intel’s mentorship and marketing reach wrapped around it, Intel® Liftoff is more than a program - it’s a launchpad.
Ready to take off?
Intel® Liftoff is free, virtual, and open to early-stage AI startups worldwide. No cohorts. No equity. No limits. Apply today!
Related resources
- Intel® Tiber™ AI Cloud - Cloud platform for AI development and deployment
- 6th Gen Intel® Xeon® Scalable Processor - Latest generation of enterprise server processors
- Intel® Gaudi® 2 AI accelerator - High-performance AI training processor designed for deep learning workloads