Nvidia in Talks to Acquire or Deepen $800 Million Bet on AI Startup Reflection AI

Nvidia is in early-stage talks to deepen its investment in or acquire Reflection AI, an open-source artificial intelligence startup focused on automating software development, the Financial Times reported Saturday, citing people with direct knowledge of the matter.

A possible acqui-hire

The discussions could take several forms, according to the report, including a so-called acqui-hire arrangement in which Nvidia would hire the startup’s staff and license its technology rather than pursue a full acquisition — a structure that could avoid a lengthy regulatory review. An agreement could be reached in the coming weeks, though the people familiar with the matter cautioned that the talks could still fall apart.

Reflection declined to comment on the report, while Nvidia did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

An $800 million bet, so far

Nvidia is already a major financial backer of Reflection AI, having invested $800 million in the startup, the FT reported. Reflection, founded in 2024 by former DeepMind researchers Misha Laskin and Ioannis Antonoglou, builds tools that automate software development — one of the fastest-growing use cases for AI.

Chief executive Laskin told CNBC in April that the startup was raising fresh capital at a pre-money valuation of $25 billion. The company on Monday launched its first open-weight model, Beam, aimed at coding and agentic tasks, as it seeks to compete with lower-cost Chinese models such as DeepSeek and Kimi.

The talks, if they progress, would deepen Nvidia’s reach across the full AI stack, adding an open-weight model developer to its existing dominance in the chips that power AI data centers.

Reporting based on coverage by the Financial Times, via Business Standard and Reuters.