AMD acquires AI chip startup Taalas to hardwire models into silicon

Published Aug 6, 08:05 PM UTC

Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) has agreed to acquire Taalas, a Toronto-based startup that makes specialized chips for AI inference. Unlike general-purpose GPUs, Taalas' accelerators are hard-wired for a single AI model, offering lower cost and thousands of times faster output for specific models. The deal comes seven months after Nvidia bought Groq assets for $20 billion. Taalas' current chip runs a small version of Meta's Llama 3.1, and the company is developing chips for larger models. AMD plans to integrate Taalas technology into its roadmap, including systems with its CPUs and Instinct GPUs, as part of its strategy to offer integrated rack-scale solutions like the Helios system. AMD CEO Lisa Su emphasized that while GPUs will dominate the AI chip market, specialized chips are important for low-latency applications.