Jim Keller's Tenstorrent Raises $100 Million From Hyundai, Kia & Samsung

Tenstorrent, the AI chipset specialist led by legendary semiconductor designer Jim Keller, has secured $100 million in funding from South Korean powerhouses Hyundai, its subsidiary Kia, and Samsung. Tenstorrent is in the process of developing chips imbued with advanced AI capabilities, that can be utilised in a range of applications, from autonomous driving technology to training AI systems like ChatGPT by OpenAI. This sector is currently dominated by Nvidia, the world's most valuable semiconductor company.

Jim Keller has had tenures at AMD, Apple, PASemi, Tesla, and most recently, Intel. His most recent role was as the chief CPU architect at Intel before he left the company in 2021 to join Tenstorrent, initially as CTO and subsequently as CEO.

Keller is renowned for helping design the A series of processors for the iPhone in the early 2010s. He joined Apple after Steve Jobs acquired a company called PASemi, whose technology underpins every Apple gadget on the market. From Apple, he moved to AMD where he masterminded its resurgence in the PC space. Prior to Intel, he worked with Elon Musk at Tesla, where he developed the self-driving chip that replaced Nvidia's chips.

Tenstorrent is valued at $1 billion, having raised a total of $234.5 million. This includes $30 million from Hyundai, $20 million from Kia, and $50 million from the Samsung Catalyst Fund.

"Hyundai Motor Group today announced a strategic investment in Tenstorrent, an artificial intelligence (AI) semiconductor company based in Toronto, Canada. This will enable the Group to incorporate AI into future Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis vehicles, as well as other future mobility solutions, including robotics and advanced air mobility (AAM)," stated the Hyundai Motor Group.

Hyundai recently acquired Boston Dynamics, widely regarded as the leading player in the robotics field.

"The faith shown in Tenstorrent by Hyundai Motor Group leading our funding round is truly humbling," said Jim Keller, CEO of Tenstorrent.

"It has been impressive watching Hyundai Motor Group become the third largest automaker in the world through their aggressive adoption of technology. This includes their acquisition of Boston Dynamics, their joint venture with Aptiv, and now their investment in us," he added.