Transtreams raises Series A for AI video chips, led by Addor Capital
What's the deal? TranstreamsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a Beijing AI chip startup, has closed a Series A round worth several hundred million yuan, the company confirmed.
The round was led by Addor CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, with backing from NexgoDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Jinpu InvestmentDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Zhaohui CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Baidu VenturesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Shuimu Investment GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and Yizhuang Kechuang Phase II Fund. Existing investors Shunxi FundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and Jiuzhi CapitalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → added more capital.
Funds will go toward next-generation chip development, mass production of its SL200 chip, and overseas expansion.
Why now? The boom in short video, live streaming, and AI-generated video (AIGV) has driven a sharp rise in demand for video processing power.
Traditional CPUs and GPUs hit clear efficiency limits on video tasks, pushing up data centre costs. With high-end GPUs harder to source in China, demand for domestic, purpose-built chips has grown urgent.
Spun out from Kuaishou's chip division in March 2024, Transtreams builds dedicated video and multimodal computing power. Its SL200 chip already serves 700 million Kuaishou users.
What could go wrong? The startup is betting heavily on AIGV, a fast-moving but unproven market, while competing against entrenched GPU giants such as Nvidia.
Its next-generation chip, using a domestic 3D stacking design, only completed tape-out in April 2026. Scaling new architecture into reliable mass production carries real execution risk.
The signal: Transtreams reflects China's drive to build self-sufficient AI infrastructure as access to top foreign chips tightens.
The SL200 has sold nearly 100,000 units to Kuaishou, Alibaba Cloud, Baidu Cloud, and Bilibili. It claims 30%-35% better compression than Nvidia's latest AV1 solution and a monthly failure rate below 0.01% across large clusters.
With customers already in Southeast Asia and South America, the company aims to move from import substitution toward global competition.
The signal: Spun out of Kuaishou in 2024, Transtreams has reached breakout stage by anchoring its SL200 chip in the real workloads of China's largest internet platforms — a commercial validation that few domestic AI chip startups can claim. The backing of Baidu Ventures, an investor focused on the GenAI supply chain, underlines how video generation is becoming the next battleground for purpose-built, self-sufficient compute.
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