FuriosaAI, a South Korean startup specializing in AI chip development, has turned down an $800 million acquisition offer from Meta, opting instead to continue developing and manufacturing its own AI chips, according to local media reports.
The negotiations reportedly fell apart not due to pricing issues, but rather because of differences in post-acquisition business strategy and organizational structure.
Like many other tech companies building large language models (LLMs) for various AI applications, Meta is striving to reduce its reliance on Nvidia for specialized chips used in training and developing AI models. Last year, Meta introduced its own AI chips, and in January 2025, the company announced plans to invest up to $65 billion to strengthen its AI development efforts.
Neither FuriosaAI nor Meta have officially responded to these reports.
Meanwhile, FuriosaAI is currently in the process of raising approximately $48 million (KRW 70 billion) in funding and aims to complete the fundraising round soon.
Founded in 2017 by June Paik—a former employee of Samsung Electronics and AMD—FuriosaAI has developed two AI chips, Warboy and Renegade (RNGD), designed to compete with offerings from Nvidia and AMD.
The startup has also completed testing of its RNGD chips in partnership with LG AI Research and Aramco. LG AI Research is reportedly planning to integrate these chips into its AI infrastructure, while FuriosaAI intends to officially launch them in 2025.