Over the past two years, no company has ridden the artificial intelligence wave quite like Nvidia. Once known primarily for powering gaming rigs and high-performance computing, Nvidia has transformed into the beating heart of the AI economy a position reflected in its market cap crossing $4.5 trillion, soaring revenues, and unmatched demand for its high-end GPUs.
But Nvidia’s strategy isn’t just about selling chips. A quieter but equally powerful force behind its dominance is its expansive investment portfolio, which spans dozens of AI startups building everything from autonomous robots and fusion energy systems to foundational LLMs.
In 2025 alone, Nvidia participated in 50 venture deals, already surpassing its 48 investments in 2024 and that doesn’t include the deals made through its corporate VC arm, NVentures, which has also accelerated dramatically.
The company has repeatedly said its mission is to expand the global AI ecosystem by investing in game changers and market makers. Based on its investment activity, Nvidia isn’t just shaping the AI revolution. it’s financing its future competitors, partners, and customers all at once.
Why Nvidia Is Investing So Aggressively
Nvidia’s investment strategy is simple:
if you build AI, you’ll likely need Nvidia hardware.
Many of the companies Nvidia backs end up becoming customers sometimes exceptionally large ones. By injecting capital early, Nvidia:
- Secures long-term demand for its GPUs
- Expands influence across emerging AI sectors
- Establishes strategic partnerships
- Shapes the direction of foundational AI research
- Ensures ecosystems are optimized around its own hardware and software stack
This approach has positioned Nvidia at the center of nearly every major breakthrough from generative AI to humanoid robotics.
Top Nvidia-Backed Companies Raising Over $100 Million (2023–2025)
The list below highlights the most significant deals, ranked and organized by category to better understand Nvidia’s strategic priorities.
1. Generative AI & Foundation Models
These companies are racing to build the most advanced AI systems and nearly all require massive GPU clusters.
| Startup | Total Round Size | Nvidia’s Role | Year | Key Focus |
| OpenAI | $6.6B | $100M + up to $100B partnership | 2024–2025 | LLMs, AGI, AI infrastructure |
| xAI | $6B + future $20B round | Up to $2B | 2024–2025 | AGI, Grok model |
| Mistral AI | $2B Series C | Repeat investor | 2024 | European open-weight LLMs |
| Reflection AI | $2B | Major investor | 2024 | U.S. competitor to DeepSeek |
| Thinking Machines Lab | $2B seed | Early investor | 2024 | New LLM research lab |
| Inflection AI | $1.3B | Lead investor | 2023 | LLMs, later folded into Microsoft |
| Cohere | $500M Series D | Multiple rounds | 2023–2024 | Enterprise-grade LLMs |
| Perplexity AI | $500M | Multi-round investor | 2023–2025 | AI search engine |
| Poolside AI | $500M | Participating investor | 2024 | Code-assistant models |
| Runway | $308M | Multi-round investor | 2023–2024 | Video generation models |
| Reka AI | $110M | Strategic investor | 2024 | Efficient multimodal LLMs |
2. AI Infrastructure, Data Centers & Cloud Compute
These companies build the compute backbone of AI often using Nvidia GPUs at massive scale.
| Startup | Round Amount | Year | Focus |
| Nscale | $1.1B + $433M SAFE | 2024 | Data centers for OpenAI’s Stargate |
| Lambda | $480M Series D | 2024 | Training cloud with Nvidia GPUs |
| CoreWeave | $221M | 2023 | Now-public GPU cloud giant |
| Together AI | $305M Series B | 2024 | Cloud infra for building AI models |
| Firmus Technologies | $215M | 2025 | “AI factory” in Tasmania |
| Weka | $140M | 2024 | High-performance AI data platform |
| Enfabrica | $125M Series B | 2023 | Networking chips for AI clusters |
3. Robotics, Autonomous Systems & Physical AI
Nvidia is now deeply invested in “embodied AI” systems where intelligence meets the physical world.
| Startup | Round | Year | Focus |
| Figure AI | $1B+ | 2024 | Humanoid robots |
| Wayve | $1.05B | 2024 | Self-learning autonomous driving |
| Nuro | $203M | 2024 | Autonomous delivery vehicles |
| Waabi | $200M Series B | 2024 | AI-first autonomous trucking |
| Bright Machines | $126M | 2024 | Robotics for manufacturing |
As robotics increasingly relies on LLMs and simulation-heavy training, Nvidia’s GPUs become central making this category a natural investment frontier.
4. Next-Gen Science & Frontier Tech
Some Nvidia investments go far beyond software, into energy, optical computing and deep science.
| Startup | Round | Year | Focus |
| Commonwealth Fusion | $863M | 2025 | Nuclear fusion reactors |
| Crusoe | $686M | 2024 | Energy-efficient data centers |
| Ayar Labs | $155M | 2024 | Optical interconnects |
| Sandbox AQ | $150M | 2024 | Quantum + AI numerical systems |
| Hippocratic AI | $141M | 2024 | AI for healthcare operations |
5. Regional Expansion: Europe & Asia Investments
Nvidia is spreading its influence globally:
- Mistral AI (France) – strongest European LLM competitor
- Sakana AI (Japan) – low-cost, efficient generative models
- Firmus Technologies (Singapore) – climate-optimised AI data centers
This diversification ensures Nvidia’s footprint grows as AI regulation and compute demand expand internationally.
Why These Investments Matter for Nvidia Stock
Investors follow Nvidia not just for GPU sales but for the ecosystem it’s building.
Key impacts on NVDA stock
1. Securing Long-Term Revenue
Most companies Nvidia invests in will become massive GPU consumers.
2. Lock-In Advantage
Startups trained on Nvidia hardware often build their entire stack around CUDA, making switching difficult.
3. Influence Over AGI & LLM Roadmaps
By investing in OpenAI, xAI, Mistral, and others, Nvidia sits at the center of competing AI ideologies.
4. De-Risking Future Compute Demand
If one company stumbles, another in Nvidia’s portfolio will likely take its place.
5. Strategic Alignment With Cloud Providers
Companies like Lambda, CoreWeave, and Together AI expand the compute supply chain fueling more GPU adoption.
For investors tracking Nvidia stock, this investment strategy reflects a long-term vision: Nvidia wants to be indispensable to every major frontier of AI.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. Why is Nvidia investing in so many startups?
To expand the AI ecosystem, secure GPU demand, and position itself as the foundational layer of global AI infrastructure.
2. Does Nvidia only invest in AI companies?
Primarily yes but it also invests in frontier tech like fusion energy, optical networking, and robotics.
3. Which Nvidia-backed companies are the biggest GPU customers?
OpenAI, xAI, CoreWeave, Lambda, and Wayve are among the top.
4. Does this investment activity impact Nvidia stock?
Yes. Investors see these deals as strategic moats, reinforcing Nvidia’s long-term AI dominance.
5. What sectors is Nvidia expanding into next?
Humanoid robotics, AGI research labs, energy systems for data centers, and next-gen computer hardware.
Conclusion: Nvidia Is Building the Future of AI One Investment at a Time
Nvidia’s surge isn’t an accident. The company has become the backbone of the AI economy and its aggressive investment strategy cements that role for years to come.
Whether it’s a French LLM startup, an autonomous driving lab in the U.K., or a quantum-AI research firm, Nvidia has positioned itself at the center of nearly every emerging AI discipline. These investments don’t just generate returns. They reinforce Nvidia’s hardware dominance, expand its software ecosystem and lock in long-term demand for its compute platforms.
