Intel Takes Major Step in Plan to Acquire Chip Startup SambaNova | EUROtoday

Intel has signed a time period sheet to accumulate the AI chip startup SambaNova Systems, two sources with direct information of the settlement inform WIRED.

The particulars of the time period sheet are unknown. The settlement is nonbinding, that means the deal is just not but finalized and may very well be dissolved with out penalty. It might take weeks and even months earlier than regulatory approval, legal responsibility scrutiny, and monetary due diligence are full.

Intel’s curiosity in buying the startup was first reported by Bloomberg in late October. At the time, the talks had been within the early levels. The report famous that SambaNova might promote for lower than the $5 billion valuation the corporate mentioned it had reached in April 2021.

Notably, Intel CEO Lip-Bu Tan is presently the chief chairman of SambaNova Systems. Intel Capital, which Intel is within the strategy of spinning off right into a stand-alone fund, has additionally invested in SambaNova Systems. Another investor in SambaNova, Japan’s SoftBank Group, made a significant funding in Intel earlier this 12 months.

A spokesperson for SambaNova declined to remark. Intel had not responded to requests for remark on the time of publication.

SambaNova Systems was based in 2017 in Palo Alto, California, by Kunle Olukotun, Rodrigo Liang, and Christopher Ré. Olukotun and Ré are Stanford professors; Liang beforehand labored as an government at Oracle. SambaNova Systems makes an AI chip platform for inference computing, a course of the place massive language fashions make predictions from huge quantities of knowledge.

As of early 2025, the startup had raised $1.14 billion in funding, in line with PitchBook knowledge. In 2020 it raised $250 million from asset supervisor BlackRock, Intel Capital, the enterprise agency GV, and different traders, bringing the startup’s valuation to $2.5 billion. The following 12 months, SambaNova was valued at $5 billion after a large funding spherical of $676 million, led by SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2.

The startup’s implied valuation has dropped since then, with BlackRock reportedly chopping the worth of its SambaNova shares by 17 % over the previous 12 months, in line with The Information. That seemingly made it a goal for Intel, together with the truth that Intel has lagged the remainder of the chip trade in making AI chips.

After taking over the highest job earlier this 12 months, Intel CEO Tan mentioned he intends to shore up Intel’s debt, spin off the corporate’s noncore belongings, and shift to AI-first methods. The troubled chipmaker additionally acquired an $8.9 billion infusion of capital from the US authorities in August, which it plans to make use of to develop home semiconductor manufacturing.