Nvidia Closes $700 mln Run:ai Acquisition after Regulatory Hurdles

A view of a Nvidia logo at their headquarters in Taipei, Taiwan May 31, 2023. (Reuters)
A view of a Nvidia logo at their headquarters in Taipei, Taiwan May 31, 2023. (Reuters)
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Nvidia Closes $700 mln Run:ai Acquisition after Regulatory Hurdles

A view of a Nvidia logo at their headquarters in Taipei, Taiwan May 31, 2023. (Reuters)
A view of a Nvidia logo at their headquarters in Taipei, Taiwan May 31, 2023. (Reuters)

Chipmaker Nvidia has completed its acquisition of AI firm Run:ai, the startup said on Monday, following antitrust scrutiny over the buyout.

The European Commission granted unconditional approval to Nvidia's $700 million bid for Run:ai, which helps developers optimize infrastructure for AI, earlier in December after saying in October that the deal would require EU antitrust clearance.

The EU antitrust watchdog had warned that the deal threatened competition in the markets where the companies operate.

Its probe into the deal focused on practices that could strengthen Nvidia's control over the market for graphics processing units (GPUs), which are the sought-after chips often employed in AI-linked tasks, Reuters reported.

Nvidia dominates the market for AI graphics processors and commands about 80% of its share.

However, the European Commission concluded earlier in December that Run:ai's acquisition, originally announced in April, would not raise competition concerns.

The US Department of Justice is also investigating the chip giant's buyout of Run:ai on antitrust grounds, Politico had reported in August.

Regulators on both sides of the Atlantic have recently stepped up their scrutiny of tech giants' acquisitions of startups on concerns that such deals may shut down potential rivals.

Run:ai plans to make its software open-source, it said in a blog post.

"While Run:ai currently supports only Nvidia GPUs, open sourcing the software will enable it to extend its availability to the entire AI ecosystem," it said.



IT Outage Hits German Airports, Bild Newspaper Reports

The German flag is seen outside Germany's Bundestag, the lower house of parliament. in Berlin, Germany, March 14, 2018. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
The German flag is seen outside Germany's Bundestag, the lower house of parliament. in Berlin, Germany, March 14, 2018. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
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IT Outage Hits German Airports, Bild Newspaper Reports

The German flag is seen outside Germany's Bundestag, the lower house of parliament. in Berlin, Germany, March 14, 2018. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
The German flag is seen outside Germany's Bundestag, the lower house of parliament. in Berlin, Germany, March 14, 2018. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke

Airports across Germany have been hit by a IT outage affecting federal police systems used to check incoming passengers, Bild newspaper reported on Friday, citing the police, Reuters reported.

"Our colleagues have to do a lot of things manually that the system used to do. We're still managing to get it done at the moment," said a police spokesperson responsible for Frankfurt airport, Germany's busiest.

Federal police were not immediately available for comment.