Samsung Invests in South Korean AI Chip Startup Rebellions, Targets $200 Million Funding Round Ahead of IPO

Samsung has invested in South Korean AI chip startup Rebellions, which is targeting a funding round of up to $200 million ahead of a public listing. The startup has raised $220 million since its founding in 2020 and is aiming for an IPO once the current funding round closes. Rebellions designs chips for AI inferencing and is looking to challenge Nvidia and AMD globally. The funding will partly go towards product development, with Samsung manufacturing the chip using its 4 nanometer process.

Samsung has invested in South Korean AI chip startup Rebellions, which is targeting a funding round of up to $200 million ahead of a public listing. The startup, founded in 2020, has already raised $220 million and is aiming for an initial public offering (IPO) once the current funding round closes [2].

Rebellions designs chips for AI inferencing, aiming to challenge industry leaders Nvidia and AMD globally. The funding will partly go towards product development, with Samsung manufacturing the chip using its 4 nanometer process [2].

The investment underscores Samsung's growing involvement in the AI chip market, following its recent collaboration with FuriosaAI, another South Korean AI chip startup. FuriosaAI secured a significant contract with LG AI Research, integrating its RNGD chip into LG's Exaone large-language models [1].

Rebellions' focus on AI inferencing is crucial, as this process determines how quickly and efficiently an AI can respond to real-world data. The company's chips aim to compete in performance and efficiency with Nvidia's dominant GPUs, particularly for AI inferencing workloads [1].

The funding round comes amidst growing competition in the AI chip market. Nvidia's CEO Jensen Huang offloaded shares worth $12.94 million as part of a pre-arranged trading plan, indicating the company's ongoing financial activity [1]. Meanwhile, AMD recently increased the price of its Instinct MI350 AI chips by 70%, signaling confidence in its performance-per-dollar proposition [3].

Rebellions' strategic partnership with Samsung is a significant milestone for the South Korean semiconductor industry. It demonstrates that Korean startups can develop competitive AI hardware to challenge global leaders, leveraging the nation's robust ecosystem of talent, suppliers, and government incentives [1].

Looking ahead, Rebellions plans to use the funding to further develop its AI chip technology and expand its market presence. The company's long-term goal is to become a major player in the AI hardware market, competing with Nvidia and AMD.

References:
[1] https://www.finance-monthly.com/ai-chip-war-furiosaai-lg-contract/
[2] https://www.digitimes.com/news/a20250724PD211.html?mod=2&utm_id=DailyPicksPaid
[3] https://www.ainvest.com/news/amd-ai-chip-price-hike-market-positioning-credible-long-term-alternative-nvidia-2507/