Rain AI, Backed by Sam Altman, Hires Apple Chip Vet to Lead Hardware

(Bloomberg) — Rain AI has recruited an Apple Inc. chip executive to lead hardware engineering, the second high-profile hire this month for a startup trying to design a new type of semiconductor for artificial intelligence.

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Jean-Didier Allegrucci, who helped oversee the development of processors that replaced Intel Corp. on iPhones and Macs, will guide Rain AI’s efforts to create more energy-efficient chips. He will work with chief architect Amin Firoozshahian, who moved to the startup after five years at Meta Platforms Inc.

Backed by OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman and Y Combinator, San Francisco-based Rain AI is part of a growing group of startups seeking to develop new hardware for AI platforms. He is exploring a technique known as in-memory computing, modeled on the way the human brain works, which promises to save on energy consumption when processing data where it is stored.

Rain AI joins Intel, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Samsung Electronics Co. in in-memory computing research, which still faces questions about economic viability and environmental impact. But in the long term, more efficient chips are essential for adding AI to a wider range of devices.

“Our new in-memory computing technology will help unlock the true potential of today’s generative AI models and bring us one step closer to running the fastest, cheapest, most advanced AI models anywhere,” said Rain AI CEO , William Passo. in a statement.

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