SambaNova gains investor backing in a push to challenge Nvidia

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SambaNova raised $1 billion

Highlights

SambaNova raised $1 billion at an $11 billion valuation.
Investors are backing AI chip startups that challenge Nvidia.
The company is focused on inference chips for enterprise AI.
JPMorgan Chase will use SambaNova systems for on-prem AI workloads.

According to CNBC, the financing was led by General Atlantic, with participation from Seligman Ventures, T. Rowe Price Associates, and Capital Group. The company said the deal was the first close of a Series F round and confirmed that JPMorgan Chase has selected SambaNova systems for on-premises AI inference workloads.

Investors turn to inference

The funding comes as the AI hardware market shifts beyond training large models and toward inference, where companies need to run AI systems quickly, securely, and at lower cost. Nvidia’s graphics processors still dominate the broader AI chip market, but the growth of enterprise AI agents has created room for specialized alternatives.

SambaNova is targeting that opening with its SN50 chip and server systems built for data centers. Unlike the GPU architecture that helped Nvidia become central to AI training, SambaNova’s pitch is focused on fast enterprise deployment, especially where customers want tighter control over data and infrastructure.

The company had already raised more than $350 million earlier this year while announcing the SN50 chip and a collaboration with Intel. That earlier deal was intended to help expand manufacturing and cloud capacity as SambaNova moved deeper into AI inference.

JPMorgan adds enterprise weight

JPMorgan’s decision to use SambaNova systems is important because banks are among the most demanding AI customers. They need performance, but they also care heavily about privacy, security, and control over proprietary data.

That is why on-premises inference has become a major selling point. Instead of relying fully on outside cloud providers or AI labs, companies can run models inside their own data centers and keep sensitive information within their own systems.

For SambaNova, the bank deal gives the company a high-profile enterprise reference point as it tries to convince other large customers that AI inference can move beyond Nvidia-based infrastructure.

The race beyond Nvidia

The deal shows how much capital is still chasing AI infrastructure, even as Nvidia remains the benchmark for the sector. Investors are looking for the next layer of the AI buildout, where banks, governments, and large companies need cheaper and more private ways to deploy models at scale.

That demand has also lifted public chip stocks. The PHLX Semiconductor Index has risen about 80% this year, reflecting investor appetite for the so-called picks-and-shovels companies behind AI. But the private market is becoming more crowded, with startups such as SambaNova, Groq, and Rebellions positioning themselves as challengers in inference hardware.

Earlier, we reported that Nvidia faces a delay for the next-generation Kyber AI platform.

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