Nvidia Wins Modal Deal for Vera CPUs

Modal said it plans to use Nvidia’s Vera chips for hosting AI agents after tests showed the processor doubled the amount of work the agents could complete. That is a meaningful efficiency gain for cloud operators, where performance per dollar determines how much revenue they can squeeze from each server rack.

The deal also shows Nvidia is landing customers outside its traditional base even as Modal had previously relied entirely on Intel and AMD chips for these tasks. Modal said it will run Vera alongside existing Intel and AMD hardware in a mixed fleet, assigning workloads to whichever chip performs best, rather than cutting out the incumbent suppliers immediately.

That hybrid approach underscores both Nvidia’s opportunity and the competitive fight ahead. Intel and AMD are still preparing new processors that could narrow the gap, and Modal’s chief executive said the company will test those as they become available.

Modal’s adoption comes at a time when the start-up itself is expanding quickly. Last week it raised $750 million in a round led by Accel at a $15.75 billion valuation and said it is on track for $1 billion in revenue over the next 12 months, with usage tripling and revenue rising more than 15 times year over year.

For Nvidia, the contract supports a larger pitch to investors that Vera can become a meaningful new revenue line. The company has told investors it expects at least $20 billion from Vera sales this fiscal year, on a market it estimates at about $200 billion, with OpenAI, Anthropic and Oracle already lined up as potential users.

Nvidia shares have pulled back in recent sessions, and the stock’s technical backdrop has softened with the price below its 50-day moving average and the RSI in oversold territory. Still, the company’s latest customer win reinforces the growth narrative around its push into CPUs at a time when AI infrastructure spending remains one of the market’s most closely watched themes.