South Korean AI semiconductor startup Rebellions has raised US$250 million in a Series C round, backed by Arm Holdings Plc, Samsung Ventures, and Pegatron's VC arm, accelerating its push to mass-produce energy-efficient AI chips and expand internationally. The round values the five-year-old company at US$1.4 billion, according to a company statement.
The funding marks a major milestone as Arm signed on as a strategic partner to help drive innovation in next-generation data center infrastructure. Other backers include Korea Development Bank, Korelya Capital, and Lion X Ventures of Singapore's OCBC Bank.
Doubling valuation
According to Yonhap News, Rebellions' valuation has more than doubled since its Series B round in January 2024, reaching nearly KRW1.9 trillion. The cumulative capital raised now totals around KRW640 billion. New investors also include Samsung Securities, InterVest, Bon Angels, POSCO Technology Investment, and Jusung Engineering, underscoring strong domestic and cross-border financial support.
Rebellions said the capital will help ramp up production of its REBEL-Quad AI accelerator, which debuted at Hot Chips 2025, and accelerate development of its upcoming REBEL-IO lineup. CFO Sungkyue Shin said the funding shows Korea's capital market has the capacity to build globally competitive AI semiconductor companies, and added that Rebellions aims to support the country's goal of becoming one of the world's top three AI powers.
Expanding in a competitive market
As Bloomberg reported, Rebellions joins a wave of chip startups vying for a share in the fast-growing AI infrastructure market currently dominated by Nvidia and AMD. The firm's first-generation ATOM chips are already in mass production, powering commercial AI services in Korea and deployed with customers in Japan, Saudi Arabia, and the US.
Investor enthusiasm is evident across the sector. US peer Groq recently raised US$750 million at a US$6.9 billion valuation, while local rival FuriosaAI is preparing a pre-IPO round targeting more than US$300 million.
Rebellions plans to channel its new funding into expanding operations across the US, Europe, and Asia-Pacific markets, supporting sovereign AI initiatives and attracting top semiconductor and AI talent.
Article edited by Jack Wu
