Upstage, FuriosaAI team up to launch Korea-developed NPU-powered generative AI

FuriosaAI CEO Baek Joon-ho, left, and Upstage Chief Technology Officer Lee Hwal-suk pose after signing a memorandum of understanding at FuriosaAI's office in Gangnam District, Seoul, Wednesday. Courtesy of Upstage

Two local artificial intelligence (AI) startups, Upstage and FuriosaAI, announced Wednesday that they are partnering to collaborate on a neural processing unit (NPU)-based generative AI business, signing a memorandum of understanding.

Upstage will optimize and deploy its generative large language model (LLM) Solar on RNGD, the next-generation NPU developed by AI semiconductor company FuriosaAI.

Under the agreement, the two companies will also join forces to promote NPU-powered on-premises AI infrastructure projects that run AI services and applications within a physical environment rather than on the cloud, targeting not only the local market but also expanding globally.

“This collaboration is made possible entirely with domestic AI software and hardware technologies. And it is a meaningful step toward the self-reliance of Korea’s AI industry,” Upstage CEO Kim Sung-hoon said in the release.

“Going forward, Upstage will continue to work in close cooperation with FuriosaAI and prove Korean AI’s technological competitiveness in the global market.”

This collaboration is significant for bringing together locally developed NPUs and LLMs, an important step at a time when the global AI semiconductor market is dominated by the U.S.-based Nvidia. The monopolization has resulted in ongoing instability, with global supply shortages and soaring prices for AI semiconductors.

With the generative AI LLM landscape also largely shaped by big tech firms from the U.S. and China, the successful commercialization of homegrown AI solutions based on domestic NPUs is expected to lessen dependence on foreign technology, strengthen Korea’s AI infrastructure and secure the country’s technological sovereignty.

This is not the first time Upstage and FuriosaAI have worked together. In 2022, Upstage deployed its optical character recognition solution on FuriosaAI’s first-generation NPU, Warboy. Both companies plan to continue expanding their partnership across various AI technology fields.

Meanwhile, the new administration under President Lee Jae Myung has been pushing for AI-related initiatives to prioritize advancing Korea as one of the world’s top-three AI powerhouses.

The Ministry of Science and ICT held a briefing earlier this month to explain supplementary budget projects in the AI semiconductor sector, which includes support for commercialization and development and overseas validation for AI semiconductor firms such as FuriosaAI and Rebellions.