SiFive, a company founded by UC Berkeley engineers in 2015, has raised $400 million in an oversubscribed round, valuing it at $3.65 billion. This deal is interesting as SiFive’s RISC-V open chip design operates independently of Intel’s x86 or ARM processors, which currently power Nvidia’s GPU empire.
Nvidia’s investment alongside other prominent VCs and hedge funds highlights the company's strategic interest in alternative technologies. SiFive licenses its designs to companies that modify them according to their needs, unlike Arm which now manufactures its own AI chips.
With this funding and Nvidia's backing, SiFive is poised to expand into AI data centers using CPUs compatible with Nvidia’s CUDA software. This move could make it harder for rivals like Intel and AMD to compete in the AI space, as they face competition from a 11-year-old startup that can design on open technology.
The shift towards RISC-V suggests a push towards more flexible and accessible chip designs. But with Nvidia’s investment, SiFive may also be seen as a strategic move by Nvidia itself to hedge against proprietary technologies.
