AI chip startup SambaNova announced Wednesday that it has completed a late-stage fundraising round totaling $1 billion, with General Atlantic leading the effort. The deal places the company’s post-money valuation at $11 billion.
SambaNova develops custom chips, hardware systems, and cloud-based services designed specifically for inference — the technical process through which AI models generate responses to questions and requests from users.
The funding came through a Series F round that drew significant contributions from Seligman Ventures, T. Rowe Price Associates, and Capital Group. Additional participants — both new and returning investors — included A&E Investment, Assam Ventures, funds and accounts managed by BlackRock, Intel Capital, and the Qatar Investment Authority.
According to the company, the newly raised capital will be directed toward expanding capacity, scaling deployments on a global level, and continuing investment in chips, systems, software, and full-stack AI infrastructure for its customers.
SambaNova also disclosed that JPMorgan Chase has chosen the company as an inference infrastructure partner, deploying its SN40 and SN50 systems for AI inference operations.
Earlier this year in February, SambaNova raised $350 million to support expansion of its SN50 AI chip and entered into a partnership with Intel aimed at delivering cost-effective inference solutions for AI-focused companies. That partnership included a $35 million investment from Intel, which received U.S. antitrust clearance in May after discussions about a potential acquisition between the two companies fell through.
A Reuters review of corporate records from April revealed that Intel had also planned to invest an additional $15 million in SambaNova, a move that would bring Intel’s ownership stake in the company to 9%. SambaNova did not respond in time to a request for comment regarding the current size of Intel’s stake or its specific contribution to the Series F round.
The company’s most recent valuation marks a significant jump from April 2021, when SambaNova raised $676 million in a round led by SoftBank Group’s Vision Fund 2, which valued the company at more than $5 billion at that time.
