Anthropic Walks Away From $6 Billion Decart Deal
The Claude maker ended acquisition talks after due diligence, though the two AI companies could still work together.
Topics
News
- Apple Tightens Mac Access Rules as AI Agents Gain Reach
- Trump Puts Intelligence Chief Jay Clayton in Charge of AI Task Force
- IBM Widens AI, Quantum Research With IIT Bombay, IISc
- OpenAI, Synopsys Build AI Model That Could Slash Chip Design Time
- Pentagon Plans Four-Star Command for AI, Drone Warfare
- California Draws the Line on AI Firings, Layoffs and Workplace Surveillance
Anthropic has decided against acquiring Nvidia-backed AI startup Decart after conducting due diligence on a potential deal worth about $6 billion, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
The companies could still pursue other forms of collaboration, according to the report.
Anthropic had been exploring an acquisition since at least August as the Claude developer looked at ways to expand the infrastructure needed to train and run increasingly demanding AI models.
Decart is focused on making AI workloads faster and less expensive to operate. Its technology includes the Decart Optimization Stack, designed to improve training and inference performance across different types of AI chips, alongside its Lucy and Oasis models.
Its Lucy model edits and transforms live video in real time, while Oasis generates interactive environments aimed at applications including robotics and autonomous systems, according to Decart.
Decart raised $300 million in May in a round led by Radical Ventures, with Nvidia, Adobe Ventures, Atreides Management and Valor Equity Partners among the investors. The funding took its total capital raised to more than $450 million, according to the startup.
For Anthropic, the abandoned deal comes as infrastructure becomes an increasingly important part of its expansion. The company has been committing billions of dollars to computing capacity while preparing for a possible public listing.
Reuters reported last week that Anthropic could begin marketing its IPO from mid-October at the earliest, with a potential listing before the US midterm elections in November.
The decision leaves Decart independent for now and removes what would have been an unusually large acquisition for Anthropic.
