Marvell Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MRVL) is pushing deeper into the artificial intelligence hardware arms race, with a potential multi-billion-dollar deal to acquire a photonics startup that could boost its position in high-performance datacenter silicon, according to a report.
The company is reportedly in advanced talks to buy chip startup Celestial AI in a cash-and-stock deal valued at more than $5 billion, including potential earnouts tied to product milestones, the Information reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter.
A deal could be announced by Tuesday.
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Benzinga has reached out to Marvell’s investor relations for comment on the story and is awaiting a response.
Marvell, a $78.5 billion networking-chip maker that competes with Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ:AVGO) in custom silicon and datacenter infrastructure, would expand its portfolio by acquiring Celestial AI, a startup developing photonics technology to boost communication speeds between AI compute and memory chips.
Celestial AI Funding and Backing
Celestial AI has raised $515 million to date, including a $250 million funding round in March backed by an Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMD) investment arm.
Intel Corp. (NASDAQ:INTC) CEO Lip-Bu Tan serves on the company’s board.
Marvell held $1.22 billion in cash and equivalents as of August 2, 2025.
Marvell stock tanked 18% year-to-date as it failed to reach the revenue consensus estimates in at least two quarters out of the last four quarters. It also failed to accomplish the analyst EPS consensus estimate in at least one out of the last four quarters.
Earnings Report Ahead
The company will report its third-quarter results on Tuesday, December 2, after the market closes.
JPMorgan’s Harlan Sur expects the company to meet or slightly beat earnings estimates this week and guide January-quarter revenue above consensus, fueled by strong datacenter momentum, including Trainium and Maia ASIC ramps and robust optical demand.
Rosenblatt’s Kevin Cassidy also forecasts a slight earnings beat, pointing to continued strength in AI and non-AI optical markets and noting that improving Custom IC trends in the second half could calm investor concerns about traction.
MRVL Price Action: Marvell Tech shares were up 1.37% at $92.35 during premarket trading on Tuesday, according to Benzinga Pro data.
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