SambaNova in Talks to Raise Over $350 Mn as AI Chip Demand Surges
The valuation for the round has not been disclosed.
AI chip startup SambaNova Systems Inc. is in discussions to raise more than $350 million from investors, according to Reuters, in a funding round that could be led by private equity firm Vista Equity Partners.
Venture firm Cambium Capital and Intel Corp. are also expected to participate, with Intel reportedly considering an investment of up to $150 million. The valuation for the round has not been disclosed.
The fundraising effort follows stalled acquisition talks with Intel late last year. In December, Intel had offered about $1.6 billion including debt for SambaNova—roughly a third of its 2021 valuation—before negotiations broke down. The company began seeking new financing last month.
SambaNova’s flagship product, the SN40L inference chip, targets large-scale artificial intelligence workloads. Built on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s 5-nanometer process, the chip features more than 1,000 cores and is designed to accelerate AI model inference with improved data flow and energy efficiency. It is typically deployed in the company’s SambaStack systems, which can run models with up to 5 trillion parameters.
Reuters reported that SambaNova surpassed its 2025 sales targets and recently secured multiple data centre deals, momentum that may be attracting renewed investor and strategic interest.
