# Japan Selects Tenstorrent for AI Chip Research

Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) selected Tenstorrent and Preferred Networks for a government-backed chip research project focused on xPU design and photonics-electronics integration. Preferred Networks will lead AI chiplet development, while Tenstorrent will develop open-architecture CPU chiplets with confidential-computing features. No project value, contract number, or solicitation details were disclosed, so this is a market and technology signal rather than an identified open bid opportunity. Separately, Tenstorrent raised $1.5 billion in Series E financing at a $6.2 billion post-money valuation to scale its Galaxy servers and develop its RISC-V CPU and AI chip IP.

- The project signals Japanese government investment in advanced chip design, chiplets, photonics integration, and confidential computing; these capabilities may be relevant to contractors developing AI hardware or supporting research and development.
- Companies should treat the NEDO selection as an indicator of potential technology and teaming activity, not as an available solicitation: the source provides no procurement value, contract number, or bid details.
- Tenstorrent’s financing supports its capacity to scale hardware and IP development, which may affect competition and potential supplier or collaboration opportunities in AI computing.

**Jurisdictions:** international
**Industries:** Information Technology
**Topics:** Artificial Intelligence, Grants & Funding
**Published:** October 25, 2026

### Government Entities
- New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)

### Vendors
- Tenstorrent (awardee)
- Preferred Networks (awardee)

### Key Quotes
> The future of compute is open, scalable, and owned by the people building on it.
> — Jim Keller, Chief Executive Officer of Tenstorrent

> Jim and his team bring decades of hands-on silicon, software, and IP experience, and we’re excited to partner with Tenstorrent as Galaxy continues to scale.
> — Ben Mahdavi, Founder at Trace Capital

### Sources
- [Tenstorrent raises $1.5 billion to challenge Nvidia on AI chips](https://gcn.com/tenstorrent-raises-billion-challenge-nvidia-chips/22745) - gcn.com