1. Naveen Rao, former head of AI at Databricks, is in discussions to raise $1 billion for a new startup called Unconventional, Inc., with a proposed valuation of $5 billion.
2. Andreessen Horowitz has agreed to lead the investment, and Lightspeed and Lux Capital are also participating, according to sources.
3. Rao plans to start building his new company without waiting for the full funding round to close, using a "tranched" round approach. His aim is to design a novel AI machine that includes both custom silicon chips and server infrastructure, competing with industry leader Nvidia.