Positron AI in talks to raise at up to a $5 billion valuation

Positron AI, a Reno-based maker of chips for AI inference, was in talks in July 2026 to raise about $750 million in a two-part round, Bloomberg reported. The second part could value the company at around $5 billion, up from just over $1 billion after its $230 million Series B in February 2026.

What did Bloomberg report about Positron's new round?

Positron was negotiating a round of about $750 million in two phases. As of mid-August 2026, the company had not announced terms.

Citing people familiar with the matter, Bloomberg wrote that Positron had already received multiple term sheets. The two phases were to be priced differently: $3.5 billion for the first tranche and around $5 billion for the second.

What does Positron build?

Positron designs chips and servers for inference rather than for training models. Its shipping system is Atlas; its next-generation chip, Asimov, was targeted for production in 2027, TechCrunch reported in February.

On Oracle's March 10 earnings call, co-CEO Clay Magouyrk listed it with Groq and Cerebras among companies trying to make inference cheaper and faster.

Who runs Positron and who has invested?

Positron was co-founded in 2023 by CTO Thomas Sohmers and chief scientist Edward Kmett. Mitesh Agrawal, formerly chief operating officer of Lambda, joined as CEO in 2025.

Sohmers previously headed technology and architecture at Groq, another inference chip company, SDxCentral reported (on Groq's deal with Nvidia, see this article). Qatar Investment Authority, Arm and Helena joined Positron's February round as new investors; Valor Equity Partners, Atreides Management and DFJ Growth were existing backers.

How has Positron's valuation changed?

The talks would take the valuation from just over $1 billion to about $5 billion in roughly six months. Earlier valuations were not disclosed.

A round in tranches can carry two valuations. See pre-money and post-money for how the two measures differ, and Series A, B, C and D rounds for what round letters signal.

What are the risks for investors?

The figures describe negotiations, not a closed deal, and a private valuation is set by a few investors.

• Terms may change. The size, valuation and investors can shift, or the round can fall through.
• Execution. Asimov was still in development; its schedule and performance are company targets.
• Competition. Positron competes with Nvidia and other inference chip makers such as Groq and Cerebras.
• Liquidity. Private shares cannot be sold freely; see how to exit a pre-IPO deal.

Update (September 2026): On September 10, Positron announced an $875 million Series C at a $5 billion post-money valuation: $375 million at a $3.5 billion pre-money valuation and a Series C-1 of up to $500 million, according to the company's press release. The details are in our article on the closed round.