Meta is reportedly in discussions to acquire South Korean AI chip startup FuriosaAI, with the deal potentially closing soon.

This acquisition is part of Meta's strategy to enhance its AI hardware capabilities and reduce reliance on suppliers like Nvidia.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced plans to invest up to $65 billion in AI infrastructure this year, focusing on new data centers and technologies.

FuriosaAI, founded in 2017 by former Samsung and AMD engineer Paik June, specializes in AI inference chips and has developed the RNGD chip, optimized for AI models and more power-efficient than Nvidia's offerings.

The startup has raised approximately $115 million in funding from investors, including Naver and DSC Investment, to support its development efforts.

FuriosaAI plans to begin mass production of its RNGD chip at Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing in 2025.

Meta and Microsoft are both facing challenges in producing AI chips but are committed to significant investments in AI infrastructure, with Microsoft budgeting $80 billion.

Meta's previous attempt to roll out in-house chips was scrapped due to unmet targets, leading to a reliance on Nvidia GPUs.

In addition to the acquisition, Meta is collaborating with Broadcom to create its own family of AI chips known as the Meta Training and Inference Accelerator.

While neither company has commented on the acquisition talks, finalizing the deal could reshape the AI chip landscape and intensify competition among tech giants.

FuriosaAI is recognized as a rare semiconductor maker in South Korea, contributing to the country's growing investments in AI.

FuriosaAI's RNGD chip offers competitive performance while significantly reducing energy consumption and overall system costs compared to Nvidia's H100.