Indian-origin Intel GPU chief Raja Koduri quits to start generative AI startup

In a tweet, Koduri said he will embark on a new chapter in life. Intel hired him from AMD in 2017.

“Thank you Pat Gelsinger (Intel CEO) and @intel for many cherished memories and incredible learning over the past 5 years. Will be embarking on a new chapter in my life, doing a software startup. Will have more to share in coming weeks,” he posted.

Gelsinger thanked him for his contributions to Intel tech and architecture, especially with high-performance graphics that helped bring three new product lines to market in 2022.

“Wishing you success as you create a new software co around generative AI for gaming, media and entertainment,” said the Intel CEO.

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Koduri will leave at the end of March. An Intel spokesperson said in reports that the chief architect role will not be filled at this time.

Koduri told CRN – a tech news platform – that he had “seriously considered retirement” after going on medical leave late last year and folllwing “27 years with GPU companies and 22 generations of GPU hardware”.

“But the generative AI space rekindled my passion to get into software for a bit and hopefully even the playing field leveraging non-CUDA hardware for this workload. That’s the genesis for [my] startup,” he posted on Twitter, referencing Nvidia’s dominance in the GPU market.

In his memo to employees, Gelsinger said it was with “mixed emotions” for him to say farewell to Koduri along with Randhir Thakur, the original head of the Intel Foundry Services contract manufacturing business.