(Bloomberg) – Naveen Rao, head of artificial intelligence at $100 billion startup Databricks Inc., plans to leave the position of launching a new venture to create new types of computers, according to anyone familiar with the issue.
A Databricks spokesman confirmed that Rao has moved to the company's advisory role, and said Databricks is planning to invest in his new startup. The spokesman refused to disclose the size of the investment.
Rao also discussed early with other investors about supporting the new company. This focuses on building next-generation computers to address the rising costs of AI computing power, said someone familiar with conversations asked not to be nominated for personal information discussions.
Rao declined to comment on the plans for the new company.
Rao is a serial entrepreneur who sold data and AI analytics startup MOSAICML to DataBricks in 2023 for $1.3 billion. MosaicMl had raised about $30 million from investors, including Maverick Ventures, Lux Capital and DCVC. Before that, Rao co-founded Nervana Systems, a machine intelligence platform that Intel Corp. acquired in 2016 for around $350 million.
Given Rao's track record, the new venture could attract large investors' attention with its high valuation. He also joined the wave of well-known high-tech executives who launched a startup that included former Openai Chief Technology Officer Mira Murati. The company's mindset machine lab was last valued at $10 billion, while Ex-Salesforce co-CEO Bret Taylor was recently valued at $10 billion.
Databricks recently raised $1 billion in its funding round, making it one of the most valuable startups in the country. The round was co-led by Andreessen Horowitz, Insight Partners, MGX, Thrive Capital and WCM Investment Management.
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