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.



Nvidia Ramps up AI Tech for Games, Robots and Autos

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang holds a new Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card as he gives a keynote address at CES 2025, an annual consumer electronics trade show, in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, January 6, 2025. (Reuters)
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang holds a new Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card as he gives a keynote address at CES 2025, an annual consumer electronics trade show, in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, January 6, 2025. (Reuters)
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Nvidia Ramps up AI Tech for Games, Robots and Autos

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang holds a new Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card as he gives a keynote address at CES 2025, an annual consumer electronics trade show, in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, January 6, 2025. (Reuters)
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang holds a new Nvidia GeForce RTX 5090 graphics card as he gives a keynote address at CES 2025, an annual consumer electronics trade show, in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, January 6, 2025. (Reuters)

Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang made a rock star appearance at a packed arena late Monday, touting AI chips and software for robots, cars, video games and more.

After years of being on the sidelines at the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, talk of computer chips was a hot ticket as people queued for hours to fill an arena to hear Huang talk AI.

"When you see application after application that is AI driven, at the core of it is that machine learning has changed how computing will be done," Jensen said during a one-man presentation on stage.

"There are so many things you can't do without AI."

Jensen's keynote came on the eve of the opening of the CES show floor, and on a day that Nvidia shares closed at a new record, giving the Silicon Valley company a market valuation of more than $3.6 trillion.

Nvidia's graphics unit processors (GPUs) for powering AI in datacenters have been snapped up by Google, Microsoft, Meta, OpenAI and others racing to be leaders in the technology.

During a lengthy presentation in Michelob Ultra Arena at Mandalay Bay resort, Huang introduced a GPU for ramping up AI capabilities in personal computers where Nvidia won the loyalty of gamers in the company's early days.

Nvidia touted the new GeForce RTX 50 series for desktop and laptop computers based on Blackwell chip architecture as its most advanced consumer GPUs.

"Blackwell, the engine of AI, has arrived for PC gamers, developers and creatives," Huang said.

PCs enhanced with RTX chips for AI capabilities will be available from an array of manufacturers including Acer, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Razer and Samsung, according to Nvidia.

An AI PC displayed during the presentation was priced at $1,299, built with the $549 RTX chip at the starting point of the new GPU line-up.

Along with rapid rendering of rich gameplay action, Nvidia AI technology will enable the creation of characters that perceive, plan and act like human players, according to Nvidia.

Such autonomous characters are being integrated into games including "PUBG: Battlegrounds", according to Nvidia.

Huang also introduced a family foundation models open to the world for advancing "physical AI" that enables robots to understand and engage in real-world tasks.

Nvidia expanded partnerships and technology for autonomous capabilities in cars as well, with Toyota joining its roster of partners.