Benzinga | Apr 13, 2021 01:13PM EDT

AI Chip Maker SambaNova Rakes $676M At $5B Valuation In SoftBank Led Fundraise: Reuters

* Silicon Valley's artificial intelligence (AI) start-up SambaNova Systems raked $676 million in a SoftBank Group Corp's (OTC: SFTBY) (OTC: SFTBF) Vision Fund 2 led funding round, Reuters reports.

* The chipmaker reached a total funding of $1 billion at a valuation of over $5 billion, making it the third biggest venture capital chip deal in the last twenty years.

* The recent technology-focused investment, including semiconductors, marks a pronounced shift from Silicon Valley's decade-long focus on software, social media, and the internet. The global venture capitalists have invested $7.4 billion in technology, including semiconductors, in 2020.

* SambaNova utilized chips manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd (NYSE: TSM) for server and AI software building, leased out to companies for a subscription fee.

* Interestingly, SambaNova developed its chip architecture. The company had formed a production capacity arrangement with TSM last year to protect itself from the global chip crisis.

* Rodrigo Liang and Stanford University professors Kunle Olukotun and Chris R? co-founded SambaNova in 2017.

* The latest funding round also involved new investors Temasek and the Government of Singapore Investment Corp. The existing investors included BlackRock (NYSE:BLK), Intel Capital (NASDAQ:INTC), Google Ventures (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOGL), and Walden International.

* Price action: SFTBY shares traded higher by 0.06% at $46.475 on the last check Tuesday.