Intel is preparing to invest an additional $15 million in AI chip startup SambaNova Systems, according to recent regulatory filings, deepening its stake in the inference?focused hardware firm and signaling a continued push into AI infrastructure. The move would raise Intel’s ownership in AI Chip Startup, SambaNova to around 9%, following earlier rounds of support from the chipmaker’s venture arm, Intel Capital.
The fresh injection of capital comes just weeks after the AI Chip Startup revealed a $350 million Series E round, led by Vista Equity Partners and Cambium Capital, with Intel participating alongside other institutional investors.
That round is being used to scale SambaNova’s SN50 AI accelerator, expand its SambaCloud platform, and improve integration with enterprise software stacks, with Japan’s SoftBank already lined up as the first customer to deploy SN50 in next?generation AI data centers.
For Intel, the additional $15 million underscores a strategic bet on AI inference outside its own GPU and Gaudi?style product lines. The two companies last month announced a multi?year collaboration focused on delivering high?performance, cost?efficient AI inference solutions built around Intel Xeon?based infrastructure.
The plan is to combine Intel’s CPUs, networking, and storage platforms with SambaNova’s systems to create ready?to?deploy inference racks for AI?native companies, model providers, and government organizations.
The partnership also complements Intel’s broader AI roadmap, including its data center GPUs and edge-to-cloud AI engagements. By working with SambaNova rather than acquiring it outright after reported acquisition talks reportedly stalled, Intel gains a flexible, dedicated inference partner while retaining control over its own silicon strategy.
With inference demand rising sharply as enterprises move beyond training into large?scale deployment of generative AI models, the relationship between Intel and SambaNova is positioning both players to compete more directly against Nvidia?centric data center setups.
The fresh investment not only strengthens SambaNova’s balance sheet but also tightens the alignment between one of the world’s largest chipmakers and a niche AI?chip specialist riding the next phase of the AI infrastructure boom.
