Nvidia buys Arm from SoftBank for $40 billion

Nvidia said Sunday that it would acquire British chip designer Arm from SoftBank in a deal worth about $40 billion, a move that could reshape the battle over technology that powers smartphones and data centers.

Nvidia, best known for supplying chips that render images in video games, said it would pay SoftBank a combination of cash and shares in the transaction. Nvidia’s market capitalization has skyrocketed to over $300 billion lately, partly owing to recent success in artificial intelligence applications and pandemic-fueled growth in chips used for PC gaming.

If completed, the transaction would instantly transform Nvidia into one of the most influential players in smartphone technology, a market that had previously eluded it.