Thinking Machines Lab inks massive compute deal with Nvidia
Source: TechCrunch
In Brief
Posted: 8:08 AM PDT · March 10, 2026
Image Credits: Patrick T. Fallon / AFP / Getty Images
Strategic partnership with Nvidia
Thinking Machines Lab, the AI research lab founded by OpenAI co‑founder Mira Murati, announced a multi‑year strategic partnership with Nvidia. While the financial terms were not disclosed, the agreement includes deploying at least one gigawatt of Nvidia’s Vera Rubin systems—hardware released earlier this year—starting in 2027.
Nvidia’s investment
In addition to the partnership, Nvidia is making a strategic investment in Thinking Machines Lab. Since its February 2025 founding, the lab has raised more than $2 billion from investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, Accel, Nvidia, and AMD’s venture arm.
Company valuation and product launch
The seed‑stage company is valued at over $12 billion. In October, Thinking Machines Lab released its first product, an API called Tinker.
“Nvidia’s technology is the foundation on which the entire field is built,” Murati said in the blog post announcing the deal. “This partnership accelerates our capacity to build AI that people can shape and make their own, as it shapes human potential in turn.”
Leadership changes
Thinking Machines Lab has experienced several high‑profile departures:
- Co‑founder Andrew Tulloch left for Meta in October 2025.
- Earlier this year, co‑founders Barret Zoph, Luke Metz, and Sam Schoenholz returned to OpenAI.
Market context
The deal arrives amid a surge in demand for AI compute. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has projected that companies could spend $3 trillion to $4 trillion on AI infrastructure by the end of the decade. For comparison, OpenAI reportedly signed a $300 billion compute agreement with Oracle in 2025.
Update
Updated after publication to correct that Thinking Machines released its product Tinker last fall.