AI chip maker SambaNova raises $1B at $11B valuation, 5 months after last mega round | TechCrunch

SambaNova Systems Raises $1 Billion in Series F Round at $11 Billion Valuation

SambaNova Systems, a Palo Alto, California-based company that develops AI chips and systems, has completed the first close of its Series F financing round, securing $1 billion at an $11 billion valuation. The round was led by General Atlantic, with additional investors expected to participate in a second close within the coming weeks.

Rodrigo Liang, chief executive officer and co-founder of SambaNova, stated that several more investors are scheduled to join before the round concludes. The company was founded in 2017 and has previously raised capital through multiple rounds, including a $350 million Series E completed in February 2026.

The Series F announcement follows the February 2026 launch of SambaNova’s SN50 chip. Earlier reports from December 2025 indicated that SambaNova had engaged in acquisition discussions with Intel at a valuation of approximately $1.6 billion. Liang described the company as continuing to receive acquisition inquiries but did not indicate that recent financings have altered its strategic options. He noted that SambaNova maintains openness to potential exits while also considering a path toward becoming a public company, depending on market conditions and growth trajectory.

Intel has participated in SambaNova’s financing since the Series C round and joined the current Series F. In February 2026, the companies announced a multi-year partnership focused on AI inference workloads using Intel’s Xeon processors. The firms now jointly develop and market certain products. Liang said the relationship allows SambaNova to utilize Intel’s manufacturing and distribution scale alongside its own chip technology.

In connection with the new funding, SambaNova disclosed that JPMorgan Chase has selected its SN40L and SN50 systems as an inference-infrastructure partner. The systems will support secure, on-premises AI inference operations at the bank. Liang characterized the selection as significant for the financial services sector, noting that institutions are seeking heterogeneous computing environments rather than relying exclusively on external cloud providers.

SambaNova’s product timeline includes the SN40L system, introduced in September 2023 and made available for on-premises deployment beginning in November 2023. The SN50, unveiled in February 2026, is scheduled to begin customer shipments in the second half of 2026, with SoftBank identified as the initial deployment partner. Liang stated that the company’s systems are designed to run large-scale models, including those containing trillions of parameters, and can accommodate such models within a single rack.

The company categorizes its target customers into three groups: sovereign clouds supported by government funding for domestic infrastructure, neocloud providers, and enterprises developing internal AI capabilities. In addition to JPMorgan Chase, SambaNova has named Saudi Aramco, Intel, and several Japanese firms among its customers.

Proceeds from the round will be directed toward expanding operations and securing components and materials to meet anticipated demand over the next 12 months. Liang emphasized the importance of supply-chain preparation to fulfill existing and future orders.

Investors in the round include Seligman Ventures, T. Rowe Price Associates, Capital Group, A&E Investment, Assam Ventures, Battery Ventures, Cambium Capital, BlackRock, Kabila Capital, QFO Capital, Qatar Investment Authority, Vista Equity Partners, and Volantis, in addition to General Atlantic and Intel.

The financing reflects continued investor interest in specialized AI hardware designed for inference workloads at large model scales. SambaNova’s approach centers on systems that integrate custom chips with software optimized for on-premises and private-cloud deployments. The company’s stated strategy prioritizes performance on frontier-scale models while addressing data-security and control requirements expressed by financial institutions and other large organizations.

Liang indicated that most current AI infrastructure spending has been concentrated among companies developing foundation models, leaving substantial additional demand among enterprises and government entities that are earlier in their adoption cycles. The JPMorgan Chase deployment is presented by the company as an example of organizations constructing dedicated infrastructure for sensitive workloads.

SambaNova continues to operate as an independent entity while maintaining commercial and investment relationships with established semiconductor and technology firms. The latest valuation and capital raise provide resources to address production capacity and component availability amid rising order volumes. Further details on the second close and additional participants are expected in the coming weeks.