In a bold move highlighting its ambitions in the competitive AI hardware space, FuriosaAI has declined an $800 million buyout offer from Meta. According to a local media report, the South Korean startup, known for its AI-optimized chips, opted to stay independent due to differences over post-acquisition strategy and organizational structure rather than valuation concerns.
Meta, like other tech giants investing heavily in AI, has been working to reduce its reliance on Nvidia’s dominant GPUs. The company has developed its own custom AI chips and plans to invest up to $65 billion this year in AI infrastructure. Acquiring FuriosaAI could have accelerated its efforts, but the startup’s leadership, including former Samsung and AMD executive June Paik, appears committed to forging its own path.
Instead of joining Meta, FuriosaAI is now in discussions to raise around $48 million (KRW 70 billion) from investors, with plans to finalize the funding round this month. The company has already developed two AI chips—Warboy and Renegade (RNGD)—positioning itself as a challenger to industry leaders like Nvidia and AMD.
The RNGD chip, optimized for AI reasoning tasks, has completed testing in collaboration with LG AI Research and Aramco. LG AI Research reportedly intends to integrate the chips into its AI infrastructure, with FuriosaAI planning a commercial launch later this year.
This decision underscores the growing importance of specialized AI hardware as companies seek alternatives to Nvidia’s expensive and supply-constrained GPUs. While Meta continues to expand its in-house AI capabilities, FuriosaAI’s refusal signals confidence in its technology and a determination to compete in the high-stakes AI chip market.
Your First 10 AI Skills
10 practical AI skills, copy-paste prompts and a 7-day plan to start using AI with confidence.
Download the guide →