FuriosaAI Secures LG as First Big Customer in AI Chip Race

Published: 23 Jul 2025

Author: Precedence Research

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The Seoul-based startup, FuriosaAI Inc., which seeks to design chips to challenge Nvidia Corporation, has sealed its first major contract after rejecting a $800 million acquisition offer from Meta Platforms Inc. After a rigorous seven-month evaluation spanning efficiency and performance, LG AI Researchers approved FuriosaAI’s AI chip RNGD. The ENGD chips compete not only with Nvidia but also with several fellow startups, including Groq Inc., Cerebras Systems Inc., and SambaNova Systems Inc. The partnership between LG and FuriosaAI is projected to deploy RNGD servers by utilizing Exaone across a wide range of industries, from electronics to finance. The partnership is also expected to strengthen LG’s in-house enterprise Artificial Intelligence engine, called ChatExaone.

About FuriosaAI Inc.

The FuriosaAI startup in Korean chip design was founded by June Paik in 2017 with the aim of capitalizing on the post-ChatGPT boom in AI infrastructure. The startup is claiming to provide 2.25 times better inference performance per watt than graphics processing units. The company is focusing on establishing a new name in the semiconductor industry, as well as supplier and government initiatives. FuriosaAI is continuously exploring ways to secure its next customers in the US, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. The company expects to reach the same agreements with these regions in the second half of 2025. The company can benefit from robust government initiatives, which have already favored Samsung and SK Hynix Inc. for more than a decade.

CEO’s Statement on this Approval

June Paik, CEO, a ex-worker of Samsung Electronics Co. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc., at FuriosaAI, has said that, “the company has worked very hard for the last eight years, from research & development to product phase and commercialization phase. The approval has given a green signal to the readiness of the product for enterprise adoption.” He claimed that a larger Korean company will use the chip in powering its Exaone large-language models.