Yesterday, AMD completed the acquisition of Nod.ai, an open-source AI software provider, to bolster its efforts in establishing an ecosystem of AI development tools, libraries, and models centered around its hardware. The deal is set to be finalized within this quarter, with undisclosed transaction details, according to CNBC.
In a press release, AMD’s Senior Vice President, Vamsi Boppana, stated that the acquisition of Nod.ai would significantly enhance AMD’s capacity to provide customers with software facilitating the effortless deployment of high-performance AI models optimized for AMD hardware. Boppana also noted that Nod.ai’s talented team would expedite the advancement of open-source compiler technology, enabling portable, high-performance AI solutions across AMD’s product range. Nod.ai’s technology is already widely deployed in cloud computing, edge computing, and various endpoint devices.
Nod.ai, headquartered in Santa Clara, was co-founded in 2013 by Anush Elangovan and Harsh Menon. Elangovan was part of Google’s inaugural Chromebooks team and a lead engineer at Cisco, while Menon had previous experience at Kitty Hawk, an electric aircraft company supported by Google co-founder Larry Page.
Initially, Nod.ai aimed to develop gaming-focused devices for gesture recognition and motion tracking but later shifted its focus to AI model tooling. They developed modules to streamline the process of optimizing and deploying AI models, reducing the need for manual intervention, especially for use in data centers and edge computing, including AMD-powered machines.
Notably, AMD’s competitor, Nvidia, offers similar software-based solutions for accelerating AI models, although they tend to be closed-source and designed to work exclusively with Nvidia’s GPUs.
Prior to the acquisition by AMD, Nod.ai had secured over $20 million in venture funding from investors such as Atlantic Bridge, Square Capital, PointGuard Ventures, and Walden International. It was reported that Alameda Research, a cryptocurrency firm co-led by Sam Bankman-Fried, a co-founder of FTX, participated in a Nod.ai funding round. However, in December, Anush Elangovan clarified that Nod.ai did not receive funding from FTX/Alameda.
Anush Elangovan, serving as Nod.ai’s CEO, emphasized the company’s dedication to swift problem-solving and adaptability in a rapidly evolving industry. He expressed confidence that their expertise, gained from maintaining and contributing to critical AI repositories, would now be extended to a broader global audience through their partnership with AMD.
Nod.ai will become part of the AI group that AMD established earlier in the year, comprising approximately 1,500 engineers. AMD plans to expand this group by approximately 300 employees by the end of the year, aiming to catch up with Nvidia in the booming market for AI chips.
