Intel and Qualcomm circle Tenstorrent as the NVIDIA-alternative trade comes due

Tenstorrent, a Jim Keller-led AI chip startup, has held early-stage takeover conversations with Intel and Qualcomm. The talks are described as conversational rather than transactional, and the company declined to comment while neither target confirmed the discussions. Tenstorrent’s valuation increased as it sought to raise $800 million at a $3.2 billion pre-money valuation, up from a prior $2.6 billion valuation. Backers include Bezos Expeditions and Samsung, and the company reportedly holds about $150 million in customer contracts, including manufacturing arrangements with Samsung and automotive-AI commitments with Hyundai. Tenstorrent designs RISC-V-based AI accelerators and sells them as both packaged silicon and licensable IP, positioning it as a potential RISC-V AI platform acquisition rather than building an NVIDIA rival from scratch.

"Tenstorrent, the Jim Keller-led AI chip startup, has held early-stage takeover conversations with Intel and Qualcomm, Bloomberg reported on Monday , citing people familiar with the matter. The talks are at the conversational rather than transactional stage, on the wire's own framing. Tenstorrent declined to comment, and neither Intel nor Qualcomm has confirmed the discussions on the record."

"Tenstorrent was in talks to raise $800m at a $3.2bn pre-money valuation led by Fidelity Management in November 2025, up from the $693m Series D it closed in December 2024 at a $2.6bn valuation. Existing investors include Bezos Expeditions, LG Electronics, Baillie Gifford, and the Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan. The company is also reportedly sitting on roughly $150m in customer contracts, including manufacturing arrangements with Samsung and automotive-AI commitments with Hyundai."

"Tenstorrent designs RISC-V-based AI accelerators (Ascalon CPU cores and Tensix AI cores) that the company is selling both as packaged silicon and as licensable IP, an unusual hybrid model for a chip startup. Keller, whose CV runs through Apple's A-series, Tesla's autopilot silicon, AMD's Zen architecture, and Intel's CPU group, joined as CTO in 2020 and took over as chief executive in 2025."

"The pitch to the named acquirers is that the alternative to building an NVIDIA rival from scratch is buying the only credible RISC-V-AI platform on the market. The buyer-side logic differs by name. Intel needs an"

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