Rivos Raises $250m to Boost RISC-V Development

RISC-V startup Rivos has successfully secured more than $250 million in an oversubscribed funding round aimed at advancing its initial chip development efforts.

Despite facing stiff competition from tech giant Apple, the Series A-3 funding round witnessed the enthusiastic participation of new investors, including industry heavyweights like Intel Capital, MediaTek, Cambium Capital, CIDC, Capital TEN, and Hotung Venture Group.

The core focus of Rivos lies in the creation of power-optimized chips that integrate high-performance server-class RISC-V CPUs with a Data Parallel Accelerator, specifically designed to enhance the efficiency of general-purpose GPUs for large language models (LLMs) and data analytics. The seamless integration of CPU and parallel computation, sharing a unified memory architecture spanning DDR DRAM and HBM memory, perfectly aligns with the demanding requirements of AI models and databases necessitating terabytes of memory.

Matrix Capital Management, the primary investor in this funding round, has secured a seat on the Board, with representation from Romit Shah. Additionally, existing investors such as Walden Catalyst, Dell Technologies Capital, Koch Disruptive Technologies, and VentureTech Alliance have shown increased support for Rivos.

The substantial funding injection will empower Rivos to bring its inaugural silicon product to fruition, while also facilitating the expansion of manufacturing capabilities, platform hardware development, software engineering, and support functions.

The company's headquarters are located in Santa Clara, California, but it is actively seeking to recruit talented engineers for its offices in Cambridge, UK, as well as in India, Taiwan, Oregon, Austin, and Fort Collins in the US. Rivos is particularly interested in individuals with cryptographic expertise and a diverse range of chip design roles.

“The rapid evolution of LLMs and their integration with data analytics underscores the critical importance of easily programmable and debuggable accelerators, along with seamless data transfer between the CPU and accelerator. Rivos addresses this imperative through our recompile-not-redesign strategy,” stated Puneet Kumar, co-founder and CEO of Rivos. “I am grateful for Matrix's vote of confidence in our approach and delighted to welcome Romit to the Board.”

“Rivos swiftly emerged as a dynamic contributor to the community. The wealth of knowledge and experience brought by Rivos engineers has propelled RISC-V forward in ISA, system, and security specifications,” remarked Calista Redmond, CEO of RISC-V International.

On the software front, Rivos played a pivotal role in initiating the open-source RISC-V Software Ecosystem (RISE) initiative.

“Expanding the scope of data analytics and large language models to encompass not only conventional data types like text, images, and video but also genomic and medical data opens up unparalleled opportunities for innovation in research and treatment,” noted David Goel, Managing General Partner of Matrix Capital Management.

“The Rivos team has seamlessly integrated the revolutionary RISC-V architecture with an innovative accelerator, effectively bringing this vision to life. Their prototype chip serves as a compelling showcase of their unique ability to leverage the advanced TSMC 3nm process node – an accomplishment few startups have achieved. We eagerly anticipate further supporting the company as it ventures into new realms of success, celebrating each milestone with shared enthusiasm and a commitment to excellence.”

www.rivosinc.com