Nvidia Licenses Groq Technology and Hires New Executives: What This Means for Innovation and Investment Opportunities in the Tech Sector
Nvidia has reached an agreement to license chip technology from the startup Groq and will also hire Groq’s CEO, a former Google executive, along with several other key engineering leaders, according to a blog post released by Groq on Wednesday.
This agreement reflects a growing trend among major technology companies to acquire valuable technology and talent without fully purchasing the target firms. Groq specializes in AI inference — the stage where trained AI models generate responses to user queries. While Nvidia currently leads the AI model training sector, it faces competition in the inference space from companies such as AMD, as well as startups like Groq and Cerebras Systems.
Under the terms of the deal, Nvidia has obtained a non-exclusive license to Groq’s chip technology. Groq’s founder Jonathan Ross, company President Sunny Madra, and other engineering staff will join Nvidia, while Groq will continue operating independently under CEO Simon Edwards with its cloud business remaining unchanged. Financial details of the arrangement were not disclosed.
Groq’s valuation has surged from $2.8 billion last year to $6.9 billion following a $750 million funding round in September. The startup differentiates itself by utilizing on-chip SRAM memory rather than relying on external high-bandwidth memory. This design improves the speed of AI inference interactions but limits the size of the AI models it can support. Cerebras Systems, which employs a similar approach, is also a key competitor and plans to go public next year.
At his 2025 keynote, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang highlighted the company’s commitment to maintaining leadership as the AI market shifts focus from training toward inference. Industry analysts noted that the non-exclusive nature of the license may help Nvidia avoid antitrust concerns, despite Groq’s leading talent moving to Nvidia.
— Reuters
Special Analysis by Omanet | Navigate Oman’s Market
Nvidia’s strategic licensing deal with Groq and talent acquisition underscores a shift in AI focus from model training to faster inference, highlighting the competition in this evolving segment. For Oman’s tech entrepreneurs and investors, this signals an opportunity to explore innovation in AI inference technologies and partnerships, while preparing for increased global competition and collaboration dynamics in the AI chip market. Smart investors should consider the rising value of specialized AI startups and the importance of agility in tech adoption to stay ahead.
