Nvidia Strikes $6B AI Licensing Deal with Poolside, Hires Staff

Nvidia has agreed to pay six billion dollars to license Poolside's artificial intelligence model-development software, known as Model Factory, and will offer jobs to one hundred nine of the startup's employees. Disclosed through an investor letter initially reported by Newcomer, the agreement also features a separate one billion dollar investment from Nvidia at a twelve billion dollar pre-money valuation. Poolside maintains that the transaction constitutes neither a formal acquisition nor an acquihire, and the startup will continue to operate as an independent entity with its three co-founders remaining. The substantial licensing fee is slated for distribution back to Poolside's investors by the end of next year. Mirroring previous alternative structures executed with startups like Groq and Enfabrica, the deal grants major technology access and engineering talent without triggering traditional merger reviews, though the setup has drawn mounting scrutiny from lawmakers regarding regulatory oversight.