Nvidia in reported talks to deepen investment in Reflection AI or acquire it

Multiple structures under consideration

Nvidia is in early-stage discussions with open-weight AI startup Reflection AI that could take the form of a deeper equity investment, additional compute supply, or an outright acquisition, the Financial Times reported on October 10, citing people with direct knowledge of the matter. Reuters and subsequent outlets relayed the report; Nvidia and Reflection have not confirmed an agreement and the discussions could still collapse. The FT said an agreement could be reached in the coming weeks, while warning talks could fall apart.

Acqui-hire among the reported options

Among the structures under discussion is an "acqui-hire" arrangement in which Nvidia would hire staff and license technology rather than pursue a full acquisition, a route the FT said could help avoid a lengthy regulatory review. The Business Times, citing a person familiar with the matter, said the talks also cover providing Reflection with additional chips or increasing Nvidia's equity stake. The Straits Times similarly described an option in which Nvidia would offer the startup computing power. No terms have been agreed.

Nvidia already counts as a major Reflection backer

Nvidia has previously invested $800 million in Reflection, making it a major financial backer and strategic investor before the current talks. The startup, founded in 2024 by former DeepMind researchers Misha Laskin and Ioannis Antonoglou, develops tools that automate software development and has been raising fresh capital at a reported pre-money valuation of $25 billion. Reflection launched Beam earlier in October, its first open-weight model aimed at coding and agentic tasks.

Sits within Nvidia's widening AI investment push

A Reflection transaction would extend a string of recent Nvidia deals spanning the AI stack. The Business Times noted Nvidia's reported $13 billion agreement to buy AI model company Hugging Face in September and an approximately $20 billion licensing pact with chip startup Groq. The same outlet, citing FT-sourced reporting, said open-weight models such as Beam sit at the center of chief executive Jensen Huang's strategic focus and align with US efforts to back open-weight standards against cheaper Chinese rivals. Reflection has separately struck billion-dollar compute arrangements with SpaceX and Nebius Group.

What the reviewed reports do not disclose

The FT and its syndication partners do not disclose potential pricing, the share of equity under discussion, or which structure Nvidia prefers; absent direct confirmation from Nvidia or Reflection, the outcome remains undecided and the talks could lapse without a deal.