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Groq, Inc.

AI Inference SemiconductorsFounded 2016
Reviewed by Swet Parvadiya
Company data updated: October 2026
Independent Editorial Analysis
9 historical events · Editorial analysis

Groq Company Profile: Revenue, Business Model & Strategy

Research depth: 9 milestones · 10 FAQs

Groq is a private American AI inference company founded in 2016 by Jonathan Ross and Douglas Wightman. It runs the GroqCloud inference platform on its LPU chips. Co-founder Doug Wightman is CEO in 2026, after Nvidia's roughly $20 billion licensing deal took Ross to Nvidia and interim CEO Simon Edwards left for Bloom…

How Groq makes money: Groq makes money by selling AI inference. Most customers pay per million tokens to run open-weight models (such as Llama, Qwen, Kimi and Whisper) through GroqCloud, an OpenAI-compatible API with a free tier and paid…

Revenue & employeesCEO historyFoundersBusiness model
Annual Revenue (unaudited) (FY2025)$172.5M
CEODoug Wightman
Founded2016
IndustryAI Inference Semiconductors
By Swet ParvadiyaLast reviewed:
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Data sources: annual reports, SEC filings, methodology
Industry:AI Inference Semiconductors

Groq, Inc. key figures

Groq, Inc. had revenue of $172.5M (unaudited) for fiscal year 2025.

Source: Industry estimate · Last reviewed October 2026

Current chief executive
Doug Wightman
In the role since 2026
Documented transactions
3
Between 2022 and 2024
Founded
2016
10 years ago
Where was Groq founded?
Groq was founded in Mountain View, California in 2016.
When did Groq start?
Groq was founded in 2016.
How old is Groq?
Groq is 10 years old as of 2026.
In-Depth Analysis
272 words · 2 min read

Groq, Inc. is a private AI inference company in Mountain View, California, founded in 2016 by Jonathan Ross and Douglas Wightman. It designed the Language Processing Unit (LPU) and runs GroqCloud, an API for fast inference on open models.

What does Groq do?

Groq sells AI inference. Developers and companies send requests to GroqCloud and pay per million tokens to run open-weight models. Larger customers buy dedicated capacity or on-premises GroqRack systems. By mid-2026 the company reported 13 data centers across North America, Europe, the Middle East and APAC and more than five million developers.

The LPU

The LPU keeps model weights in on-chip SRAM rather than external HBM and uses a compiler to schedule every operation in advance. That design made GroqCloud one of the fastest providers in public benchmarks after its 2024 launch.

The Nvidia deal

On December 24, 2025, Groq and Nvidia announced a non-exclusive license of Groq's inference technology, reported at about $20 billion. Founder Jonathan Ross, president Sunny Madra and other staff joined Nvidia; Ross is now Nvidia's chief software architect. Nvidia unveiled its Groq 3 LPX inference system at GTC in March 2026.

Leadership and funding

CFO Simon Edwards became CEO after the deal and left for Bloom Energy in April 2026. Co-founder Doug Wightman is now CEO, with Alex Davis of Disruptive as chairman. Groq raised $640 million at $2.8 billion in August 2024, $750 million at $6.9 billion in September 2025, and $650 million in June 2026 at an undisclosed valuation.

Competitors

Groq competes with Nvidia, Cerebras, SambaNova, AMD and hyperscaler chips, and with inference clouds such as Together AI and Fireworks AI.

Table of Contents

Groq, Inc. Key Facts

CompanyGroq, Inc.
Financials$172.5M (unaudited) (FY2025, last reviewed October 2026)
Valuation$6.9B (private company, last reported)
Last reviewedBy Swet Parvadiya, Founder & Editor - October 2026
Founded2016
Founder(s)Jonathan Ross, Douglas Wightman
CEODoug Wightman
HeadquartersMountain View, California, United States
IndustryAI Inference Semiconductors

Groq Company Profile: Revenue, Business Model & Strategy

"Groq built one of the fastest AI inference chips, was valued at $6.9 billion in September 2025, and three months later licensed its technology to Nvidia in a deal reported at about $20 billion."

Why Groq, Inc. Wins

GroqCloud built its following on speed: on-chip SRAM and compile-time scheduling let it serve open models at high tokens per second with predictable latency. It now pairs that with 13 data centers, more than five million developers, an OpenAI-compatible API that is easy to switch to, and Nvidia Cloud Partner status.

Groq, Inc. operates in a competitive market alongside Cerebras Systems Inc., NVIDIA Corporation, Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., Intel Corporation, Alphabet Inc.. Analysts frequently compare Groq, Inc. and Cerebras Systems Inc. due to their overlapping products, target markets, and strategic positioning. See full comparison →

Groq is a private American AI inference company founded in 2016 by Jonathan Ross and Douglas Wightman. It runs the GroqCloud inference platform on its LPU chips. Co-founder Doug Wightman is CEO in 2026, after Nvidia's roughly $20 billion licensing deal took Ross to Nvidia and interim CEO Simon Edwards left for Bloom Energy.

Revenue

$172.5M

Founded

2016

Author: CorpDigest Research DeskCompany Research

Explore Groq In Depth

Detailed research across every dimension of Groq — history, financials, leadership, and strategy.

Company History

Groq started as a chip company trying to beat GPUs at inference and became, by 2026, primarily an AI inference cloud.

Full Groq history →

Revenue & Financials

Groq had $172.5M (unaudited) in revenue for fiscal year 2025. Data covers 3 fiscal years.

Groq financials →

Founders

Groq was founded by Jonathan Ross, Douglas Wightman in 2016. Explore each founder's background, motivations, and their role in building the company.

Groq founders →

CEO & Leadership

Groq is currently led by Doug Wightman. Explore the full CEO history — leadership transitions, tenures, and the strategic decisions of each chief executive.

Groq CEO history →

Business Model

Groq makes money by selling AI inference. Most customers pay per million tokens to run open-weight models (such as Llama, Qwen, Kimi and Whisper) through GroqCloud, an OpenAI-compatible API with a free tier and paid…

How Groq makes money →

Acquisitions

Groq has completed 3 documented acquisitions. Explore the full acquisition history and strategic rationale behind each deal.

Groq acquisitions →

Competitive Strategy

Since the Nvidia deal, Groq's strategy is to grow GroqCloud as a neocloud: add data center capacity across regions, sell dedicated and sovereign capacity to large customers, and run a mix of its own LPUs and Nvidia…

Groq strategy →

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Frequently Asked Questions About Groq

What is Groq?

Groq is a private AI inference company in Mountain View, California, founded in 2016 by Jonathan Ross and Douglas Wightman. It created the LPU inference chip and runs GroqCloud, an API for fast open-model inference. In December 2025 Nvidia licensed Groq's technology for about $20 billion and hired Ross; Groq stayed independent, is led by Doug Wightman, and raised $650 million in June 2026.

How does Groq make money?

Groq earns most of its money by selling AI inference through GroqCloud, where customers pay per million tokens to run open models, plus dedicated and on-premises capacity for larger customers. In December 2025 it also received a one-time payment from Nvidia for a non-exclusive license to its inference technology, reported at about $20 billion. Groq does not disclose revenue.

Who is the CEO of Groq?

Co-founder Doug Wightman is Groq's CEO as of 2026. Founder Jonathan Ross led Groq from 2016 until December 2025, when he joined Nvidia. Former CFO Simon Edwards then served as CEO until leaving to become Bloom Energy's CFO in April 2026.

Who owns Groq? Did Nvidia buy Groq?

Nvidia did not buy Groq. It signed a non-exclusive license for Groq's inference technology and hired key staff, while Groq stayed an independent private company. Groq is owned by its founders, employees and investors, including Disruptive (whose founder Alex Davis chairs Groq's board), Infinitum, BlackRock, Neuberger Berman, Samsung, Cisco, Tiger Global and D1 Capital.

What is Groq worth?

Groq's last disclosed valuation was $6.9 billion post-money after its $750 million round in September 2025. It raised $650 million in June 2026 without disclosing a new valuation.

Who are Groq's competitors?

Groq competes with Nvidia (including Nvidia's Groq-derived LPX systems), Cerebras Systems, SambaNova, AMD, Google TPU and AWS Inferentia on hardware, and with inference clouds such as Together AI, Fireworks AI and the major hyperscalers on GroqCloud.

What is an LPU?

A Language Processing Unit is Groq's inference chip. It stores model data in on-chip SRAM instead of external HBM and relies on a compiler to schedule every operation in advance, which gives fast, predictable token generation.

Is Groq the same as Grok?

No. Groq is the AI inference company founded in 2016. Grok is the chatbot made by Elon Musk's xAI. The two are unrelated.

Are Grok and Groq the same?

No, Groq is an AI chip and hardware company that builds fast inference chips (LPUs), whereas Grok is an AI chatbot software developed by Elon Musk's xAI.

Who founded Groq?

Groq was founded in 2016 by Jonathan Ross, a former Google engineer who helped design Google's original TPU.

Analysis: How Groq, Inc. Makes Money

Deep dive into the Groq, Inc. business model, revenue streams, and strategic moats in 2026.

Competitor Benchmarking

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Financial data on this page is sourced from SEC EDGAR filings, official earnings releases, and verified press statements. Revenue figures are reviewed and updated periodically. Read our full data methodology ->

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Editorial Methodology

Company Research

We use company filings, annual reports, company statements and press reports, with primary sources preferred where available. Each financial row shows its recorded source. Full-year figures are separated from annualized run-rates, partial periods and forecasts; unaudited figures carry a label. Source detail varies by company, so check the linked material when the reporting basis matters.

1. Primary Sources

Public companies may provide filings and annual reports. Private-company figures may come from statements or press coverage. A missing figure stays missing, and a source link should identify where its number came from.

2. Expert Curation

We organize company records and review claims for strategic context, source quality and clarity. Pages show a review date where one is recorded.

3. Multi-Pass Audit

Technical checks flag inconsistent figures and missing links. Editorial review of the underlying source remains necessary for claims those checks cannot verify.

Swet Parvadiya
SEC filings & public records methodology
Sourced from public financial records

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Sources & References

The data and narrative synthesized in this intelligence report were verified against primary sources:

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