Summary: Vista Equity Partners is leading a Series E round of over $350 million in SambaNova Systems through a partnership with Cambium Capital, with Intel slated to invest roughly $100 million and the possibility to increase that to $150 million. The capital raise aims to help the AI chipmaker expand its inference-focused products and cloud services as it seeks to compete with larger incumbents. Fundraising remains in progress and terms are subject to change.
People familiar with the matter say private equity firm Vista Equity Partners is spearheading a fresh funding round exceeding $350 million for SambaNova Systems, an artificial intelligence hardware startup focused on inference chips. Vista is participating in the Series E financing via a collaboration with early-stage investor Cambium Capital, according to those sources.
Among other participants, chipmaker Intel is expected to take part in the oversubscribed round. Intel currently plans to put in roughly $100 million, with the potential to raise its commitment to as much as $150 million, two sources indicated. The company is among several existing investors that have shown interest in the financing.
Executives and representatives from Vista, SambaNova and Intel declined to provide comment. Cambium did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Sources cautioned that the fundraising is ongoing, that Reuters was not the only recipient of the information, and that final terms could still change.
The cash infusion is aimed at strengthening SambaNova's position against competitors, including the market leader, as customers increasingly seek chips optimized for rapid AI inference. The startup has shifted its emphasis toward inference processors and cloud services after raising more than $1 billion from investors since its 2017 founding.
Earlier discussions between SambaNova and Intel about a potential acquisition did not reach agreement. Intel - whose CEO Lip-Bu Tan also serves as SambaNova's executive chairman - had previously held talks to acquire the company for about $1.6 billion including debt, but those negotiations stalled, according to the sources.
SambaNova's last disclosed private valuation came in 2021, when a funding round led by SoftBank's Vision Fund 2 placed the company at $5 billion. The firm experienced operational challenges and implemented layoffs during 2024, but one source added that SambaNova recently informed employees it had exceeded its sales target for the fiscal year.
The participation of Vista represents an unusual move for the buyout firm. With more than $100 billion in assets under management and a stated investment focus on enterprise software, Vista's entry into AI hardware financing departs from its typical strategy. The firm has completed major software acquisitions in recent years, including the purchases of Citrix Systems in 2022 and Nexthink in 2025.
The fundraising emerges as sentiment toward software stocks has shifted. Investors have recently pared valuations in the sector, and a broad selloff in global software shares this week erased nearly $1 trillion in market value as the market reassesses how AI may disrupt incumbents.
At the same time, investor interest in AI-focused hardware has accelerated. Other AI chip companies have attracted large financing and acquisition activity. Cerebras Systems disclosed a $1 billion funding round this week that valued the company at $23 billion, led by Tiger Global and including 1789 Capital. Separately, rival Groq reached an agreement for Nvidia to license its technology in a roughly $20 billion all-cash deal that includes hiring much of Groq's team.
AI laboratories and large compute customers have been exploring alternatives to Nvidia's GPUs to secure fast-inference capacity. OpenAI has held talks with both Groq and Cerebras about compute supply arrangements, according to the sources cited.
Contextual details and status:
- Vista is leading a Series E financing round for SambaNova exceeding $350 million, partnering with Cambium Capital.
- Intel is expected to invest about $100 million with potential to increase to $150 million; other investors have joined the oversubscribed round.
- Fundraising remains active and final terms, including valuation, have not been determined.
People close to the matter emphasized that discussions remain fluid and that commitments could change as the round finalizes. The financing is intended to bolster SambaNova's ability to deliver inference chips and expand cloud services, aligning with the company's pivot since its earlier funding rounds.