Intel nears US$1.6 billion deal for AI chip startup SambaNova

Intel is in advanced talks to acquire artificial intelligence (AI) chip startup SambaNova Systems for about US$1.6 billion, including debt, according to sources familiar with the matter.

A deal for Palo Alto, California-based SambaNova could come together as soon as next month, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because the information is confidential.

While the discussions are advanced, the terms and the timing could change, the sources said. It’s also possible that SambaNova, which has signed term sheets with other would-be financial investors, could opt to pursue another path, they added.

Representatives for Intel and SambaNova declined to comment.

Founded in 2017 by Stanford University professors, one of whom had won a MacArthur Genius Award, SambaNova designs custom AI chips, aiming to rival those offered by Nvidia Corp.

Intel chief executive officer Tan Lip-Bu is chairman of SambaNova. His venture capital firm Walden International was one of the company’s founding investors, having led a US$56 million Series A round in 2018.

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At US$1.6 billion, an acquisition of SambaNova would deliver Intel a long-sought platform to help build out its AI product offering, and at a discount. SambaNova was valued at US$5 billion in 2021 in a US$676 million funding round led by SoftBank Group’s Vision Fund 2.

Intel’s stock has been on a tear since the US government said in August that it would take a 10 per cent stake in the chipmaker. The shares, which have gained about 60 per cent since before that announcement, fell 4.3 per cent to US$37.81 on Friday in New York trading, giving the company a market value of US$180 billion. BLOOMBERG

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