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Amazon in Talks to Buy Israeli AI Startup Decart for About $7 Billion

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Amazon Tower I , a 37-story office building in Seattle, Washington built for Amazon.com , being topped out in 2015.
Image credit: SounderBruce · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

In brief

Amazon is negotiating to acquire Decart, an Israeli-founded AI startup, in a deal reportedly worth around $7 billion, according to the Wall Street Journal. No agreement has been finalized, and people familiar with the talks say they could still collapse, as a similar bid from Anthropic did last month.

Amazon is in advanced discussions to acquire Decart, a San Francisco-based, Israeli-founded artificial intelligence startup, in a deal that could be worth approximately $7 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported. The report said a deal could be finalized within days, but cautioned that the negotiations could still break down or that another bidder could emerge.

Decart has not confirmed a signed agreement, and Amazon has not issued a public statement on the talks as of this report.

What Decart does

Decart was founded in 2023 by Israeli engineers Dean and Orian Leitersdorf, who are brothers, together with Moshe Shalev, according to Calcalistech and SiliconANGLE. The company builds software that lets AI models run efficiently across different chip types, a capability it calls DOS, which it says compresses the months-long process of optimizing neural networks for new processors into about two weeks.

Beyond that optimization layer, Decart also develops its own AI models: Lucy, a real-time video editing tool, and Oasis, a system that generates simulated 3D environments used in gaming and robotics training, according to Calcalistech.

Funding history and valuation jump

In May 2026, Decart raised $300 million at a valuation of about $4 billion, led by Radical Ventures, with participation from Nvidia Ventures, Adobe Ventures, Sequoia Capital and Benchmark, SiliconANGLE reported. That brought the startup's total funding to more than $400 million. A $7 billion purchase price would mark a sharp increase from that May valuation just months later.

Decart's valuation timeline
DateEventValue
2023Company founded by Dean Leitersdorf, Orian Leitersdorf and Moshe Shalev—
May 2026Funding round led by Radical Ventures~$4 billion valuation
August–September 2026Anthropic acquisition talks, later abandoned~$6 billion reported price
October 2026Amazon acquisition talks, not yet finalized~$7 billion reported price

Amazon's existing relationship with Decart

Amazon Web Services already works with Decart as a customer. AWS gave the startup early access to its Trainium3 AI training chips before they became widely available, after senior AWS engineers met Decart's technical team and were reportedly impressed, according to SiliconANGLE. Analysts covering the talks framed a potential purchase as deepening Amazon's effort to compete with Nvidia in AI infrastructure and chip optimization.

Anthropic walked away from a similar deal

Decart was previously the subject of acquisition talks with Anthropic, which emerged as a preferred bidder around August 2026 at a reported price of about $6 billion. Anthropic proceeded far enough to review Decart's business and technology in detail before deciding in September 2026 not to pursue the transaction, according to Calcalistech, which cited Bloomberg. The report said this did not necessarily reflect a rejection of Decart's technology itself, and noted that Anthropic and Decart are still discussing other forms of collaboration.

Amazon's talks follow directly from Anthropic's withdrawal, according to multiple reports citing the Wall Street Journal.

What is known and unknown

Questions

Has Amazon officially confirmed it is buying Decart?
No. As of this report, the deal is still in negotiation, according to the Wall Street Journal, and people familiar with the talks say they could still fall apart.
What does Decart make?
Decart builds software that optimizes AI models to run across different chip types, plus two AI products of its own: Lucy, a real-time video editing tool, and Oasis, a simulated-environment generator used in gaming and robotics training.
Why did Anthropic not buy Decart first?
Anthropic was a preferred bidder at around $6 billion and reviewed Decart's business and technology, but in September 2026 decided not to proceed with an acquisition; the specific reasons were not disclosed, according to Calcalistech, citing Bloomberg.
How much has Decart raised before this deal?
Decart raised $300 million in May 2026 at roughly a $4 billion valuation, bringing its total funding to more than $400 million, according to SiliconANGLE.
Why would Amazon want Decart?
AWS already uses Decart's optimization technology and gave it early access to its Trainium3 AI chips; buying the startup would support Amazon's push to compete with Nvidia in AI infrastructure, according to reporting on the talks.

Sources

  1. Calcalistech — Amazon emerges as potential buyer of Israeli AI startup Decart at $7 billion
  2. SiliconANGLE — Report: Amazon in talks with AI startup Decart over possible $7B acquisition
  3. Calcalistech — Anthropic drops plans to acquire Israeli AI startup Decart

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