Samsung backs Nvidia AI chip rival in $230 million funding round as GPU alternatives boom

Dutch startup Euclyd raised the funding in a round co-led by Samsung, Somerset Capital Partners, the Scaleup Europe Fund and Innovation Industries.

Samsung backs Nvidia AI chip rival in $230 million funding round as GPU alternatives boom

TL;DR

  • Samsung has backed Dutch AI chipmaker Euclyd in a $231 million funding round.
  • Euclyd is designing an AI chip system with a different architecture to GPUs for inference.
  • The funding round was co-led by Samsung, Somerset Capital Partners, the Scaleup Europe Fund, and Innovation Industries.
  • Nvidia currently holds a near monopoly on high-end AI chips, but companies like Google, AWS, Meta, and OpenAI are developing their own alternatives.
  • Euclyd's systems aim to reduce the energy needs and costs of AI data center infrastructure.
  • The company plans to generate revenue by selling hardware and intellectual property.
  • Samsung's involvement is expected to provide more than just capital, offering expertise in memory manufacturing, engineering, systems, supply chains, and network access.
  • Euclyd aims to begin rolling out its physical chip systems in 2028.