Groq Now Valued at $2.8B

Good afternoon! We hope you are having a great week. We sure are, especially since our launch of The Power 20. This week's tech news is all about chips and AI, with a sprinkle of autonomous defense and trust-busting! Enjoy.

TL;DR

  • Groq raises $640M to develop AI chips

  • AI chipmaker Cerebras confidentially files for US IPO

  • Anduril raises $1.5B at a $14B valuation

  • Amazon’s $4 billion investment in AI firm Anthropic faces UK merger investigation

Groq Raises $640M to develop AI Chips

Groq raised $640 million in a funding round led by Blackrock, valuing the AI chip startup at $2.8 billion. The company, co-founded by the inventor of Google’s TPU, develops chips that run generative AI models faster and more efficiently. GroqCloud, its developer platform, serves over 356,000 developers.

AI Chipmaker, Cerebras, confidentially files for US IPO

AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems has confidentially filed for a U.S. IPO, aiming to challenge Nvidia's dominance in the AI market. The IPO will test investor appetite for AI-linked stocks amid concerns over AI spending. Cerebras, backed by investors like Abu Dhabi Growth Fund and Coatue Management, keeps financial details undisclosed.

Anduril Raises $1.5B at a $14B valuation

Defense tech startup Anduril raised $1.5 billion, valuing the company at $14 billion. Founded by Palmer Luckey, Anduril aims to rival major U.S. defense contractors like Lockheed Martin and Boeing by leveraging a Silicon Valley approach to faster defense production. The funding will scale its manufacturing platform, Arsenal, to produce autonomous military systems at scale.

Amazon’s $4B investment into Anthropic faces UK Merger Investigation

The UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has launched a Phase 1 investigation into Amazon's $4 billion investment in AI firm Anthropic. The probe will assess whether the deal could harm competition in the UK. Amazon and Anthropic assert their partnership doesn't threaten competition, and they are cooperating with the CMA.

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Until next week!

Cheerio,
-Noel