Nvidia is reportedly nearing a deal to acquire the prominent Israeli startup AI21 Labs for a sum estimated between $2 billion and $3 billion. Negotiations are said to have reached an advanced stage as the American chip giant moves to consolidate its dominance in the global artificial intelligence (AI) sector.Citing a report by the Calcalist financial daily, news agency Reuters reported that the acquisition will mark a significant exit for the Tel Aviv-based firm, which was valued at $1.4 billion during a 2023 funding round. The report further said that industry insiders suggest that Nvidia’s primary motivation for the deal is a “talent grab”. The company employs about 200 people and a majority of these hold advanced academic degrees.These employees are seen as possessing “rare expertise” in large language model (LLM) development and neural network architecture – something that tech giants are hunting for in the Silicon Valley. AI21 Labs was co-founded in 2017 by Amnon Shashua, who also serves as the CEO of autonomous driving leader Mobileye. The startup has long been a key player in the generative AI boom, positioning its “Jurassic” models as direct competitors to OpenAI’s GPT series, the report said.The potential acquisition aligns with Nvidia’s physical and strategic expansion within Israel. CEO Jensen Huang has frequently referred to the country as the company’s “second home”. Nvidia is currently planning a huge R&D campus in Kiryat Tivon, located south of Haifa. It is expected to have space for up to 10,000 employees.It is expected to offer 160,000 square meters of office space across 22 acres and the construction is slated for 2027, with the first teams moving in by 2031.
