Cerebras, a Silicon Valley startup challenging Nvidia with its dinner-plate-sized AI computing chip, announced it has raised $1.1 billion in fresh funding. The round, led by Fidelity Management & Research Co and Atreides Management, boosts the company’s valuation to $8.1 billion.
New investors include Tiger Global, Valor Equity Partners, and 1789 Capital, the venture firm where Donald Trump Jr. is a partner. CEO Andrew Feldman said Paul Abrahimzadeh, an investment banker and Citigroup veteran who had previously advised Cerebras on its IPO plans, spearheaded 1789’s participation.
“They’re putting a lot of money to work. And it was somebody we knew,” Feldman said.
Cerebras filed for a Nasdaq initial public offering last year, but the process was delayed due to a U.S. national security review of a $335 million investment from G42, an Abu Dhabi-based AI and cloud computing firm.
In March, the company said the Trump administration cleared the G42 investment, which followed a 2023 agreement to source supercomputers from Cerebras.
Feldman confirmed that the company is still moving forward with its IPO plans.
“It is very common in your path to an IPO to gather some additional capital very late in the game from world-class institutional investors,” Feldman said.
The supercomputers supplied to G42 have so far remained in the United States. Separately, in 2023, Cerebras signed a deal to provide systems to Saudi oil giant Aramco.
According to Feldman, Middle East deals will require export licenses from the Trump administration.
“We hold the license for the delivery of some equipment, and we’re seeking the license for the ability to ship more equipment,” Feldman said.
The company added that Citigroup and Barclays Capital served as joint placement agents for the latest funding round, while existing investors Altimeter, Alphawave, and Benchmark also participated.
