London-based Applied Computing has raised €10.7 million in one of the UK’s largest AI seed rounds to date.
The company is developing foundation models specifically tailored to the oil, gas, and petrochemical industries, aiming to modernize aging infrastructure with advanced, on-edge artificial intelligence.
Orbital: AI built for physical systems, not just text
The funding round was led by Stride.VC and Repeat.vc. Applied Computing’s flagship platform, Orbital, utilizes a blend of language, physics, chemical engineering, and time-series models to deliver explainable and actionable insights in real-time. Unlike traditional software that uses only a fraction of available data, Orbital leverages 100% of operational inputs from energy facilities.
According to CEO Callum Adamson, the system is already deployed at production scale in complex environments, improving margins and cutting emissions. Chief AI Officer Dr. Sam Tukra emphasized that instead of replacing critical infrastructure, the goal is to transform it for a more sustainable future.
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Efficiency, security, and local processing
Orbital processes data entirely on-site, providing a 75% cost reduction compared to cloud-based platforms, with ROI realized in under 10 weeks. The company positions itself as a practical bridge between legacy infrastructure and AI-driven optimization, especially in sectors slow to modernize.
Founded in 2023, Applied Computing has doubled in size this year and is preparing for a Series A raise later in 2025.
Backing a new era of AI for industry
Stride.VC’s Fred Destin praised the startup’s pragmatic, high-impact approach to industrial AI: “This is how responsible AI changes the world—by transforming massive, mission-critical sectors like energy and petrochemicals, not just chasing hype.”
Applied Computing’s success suggests an accelerating appetite for industrial-grade AI that goes beyond text generation and into the real-world systems powering the global economy.
