Anthropic Hires Google TPU Founder Amir Salek to Lead Custom AI Chip Development

PUBLISHED Aug 22, 2026, 12:50 AM ET

Artificial intelligence startup Anthropic has hired Amir Salek, the former head of Google's custom silicon infrastructure program, to lead its newly formed custom chip division. Salek, who spent nine years at Google directing Tensor Processing Unit development from version one through four, will oversee Anthropic's internal hardware strategy. The executive move aims to build proprietary semiconductors for training and running large language models, reducing long-term reliance on merchant silicon providers. Prior to Google, Salek spent eight years at Nvidia establishing system-on-chip design organizations. Most recently, he served as a senior managing director at Cerberus Capital Management. The appointment represents a major escalation in Anthropic's infrastructure expansion, following capacity agreements with AMD and Google. Industry analysts note that custom chip development typically requires over eighteen months to yield production hardware, leaving existing supply contracts with Nvidia, AMD, and Google Cloud unaffected. Anthropic has not released an official corporate statement confirming executive titles or start dates.

By Michael Grant | JQJO News

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