Business · Companies · 1 hr ago
Australian investors put $118 million into AI chipmaker Tenstorrent
Australian investors put $118 million into Tenstorrent through the Sydney-based investment platform NonPublic.
Tenstorrent is a US start-up that makes chips and computing systems for artificial intelligence.
The company raised $US1.5 billion, lifting its valuation to $US6.2 billion, more than twice its previous level.
The investment came after Australian investors did not back Firmus’s planned $44 billion listing, amid concerns about the cost and risks of building its business.
Tenstorrent already has significant revenue, and its chips are intended to support AI systems from individual computers to large data centres.
Led by chip engineer Jim Keller, the company uses open-source software and aims to challenge Nvidia, while Samsung, LG and Hyundai are among its customers and investors.
Australian investors put $118 million into US AI chip start-up Tenstorrent.
Tenstorrent closed a US$1.5 billion Series E funding round, more than doubling its valuation to US$6.2 billion.
The investment came after Firmus abandoned plans for a $44 billion ASX listing.
NonPublic chief executive Milan Reinartz said Tenstorrent had significant revenue and presented less execution risk than Firmus.
Tenstorrent is developing an open-source AI computing architecture intended to scale from a single card to data-centre clusters.
- Who
- A Sydney-based investment platform and a group of Australian investors backed Tenstorrent.
- What
- They invested $118 million in the AI chipmaker as part of its US$1.5 billion Series E funding round.
- When
- The funding round was reported on November 3, 2026. The investment date is not stated.
- Where
- Tenstorrent is a US start-up; the investment platform is based in Sydney.
- Why
- NonPublic founder Milan Reinartz said Tenstorrent had significant revenue and seemed less like a speculative investment than Firmus.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
Firmus abandoned its plans for a $44 billion ASX listing after failing to attract enough support from Australian investors.
Stockhead reported that Australian investors had put $118 million into Tenstorrent.
Tenstorrent closed a US$1.5 billion Series E round, taking its valuation to US$6.2 billion.
- Australian investment
- $118 million
- Series E funding round
- US$1.5 billion
- Tenstorrent valuation
- US$6.2 billion
- Firmus proposed ASX listing
- $44 billion
- Tenstorrent chief executive
- Jim Keller
What people are saying
It didn’t feel as much of a castle in the sky investment
So whatever happens, we do need more chip infrastructure, and essentially, what Tenstorrent does is building a general purpose AI computer, and with an architecture that scales from a single card on a developer’s desk to full data centre clusters.
Australia tends to tear down aggressive entrepreneurs and America builds them up
The future of compute is open, scalable, and owned by the people building on it. Our investors believe in that model too and we appreciate their support