Dutch semiconductor startup Euclyd has raised US$231 million in a funding round backed by Samsung as it develops an alternative to Nvidia’s dominant AI hardware. Founded in 2024, the Netherlands-based company is developing a chip architecture combining its own processor and memory architecture to help businesses run AI inference workloads without relying entirely on conventional graphics processors. The Series A round raised €200 million and was co-led by Somerset Capital Partners, the Scaleup Europe Fund and Innovation Industries, with Samsung also participating. The investment will support two areas: selling physical AI hardware and complete rack systems directly to enterprises for on-premises AI inference workloads, and licensing Euclyd’s intellectual property so other companies can use its designs as the basis for their own AI chips. Chief Executive Bernardo Kastrup said AI’s potential will remain constrained unless the infrastructure beneath it is fundamentally changed. Despite the funding, Euclyd does not expect to begin shipping commercial hardware until 2028. Nvidia currently holds a powerful position in AI computing, with its GPUs widely used for both training and inference, and Euclyd is entering a market where established chipmakers already have extensive hardware, software ecosystems and relationships with major AI developers.