Beijing-based startup 01.AI is obtaining up to $200 million in additional finance, a dynamic move that reflects the global spike in interest in open-source AI models.
Beijing-based startup 01.AI is apparently in the midst of obtaining up to $200 million in additional finance, a dynamic move that reflects the global spike in interest in open-source AI models.
This fundraising initiative comes on the heels of the company achieving a valuation of $1 billion in November. The sources familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity due to the private nature of the fundraising details, revealed that the company is actively seeking additional investments from U.S. dollar-based investors.
Founded by Lee Kai-fu, former chief of Google China, 01.AI officially launched in July after a three-month incubation period. The startup has rapidly gained recognition in the open-source large language model (LLM) community.
In November, its Yi-34B model made headlines by becoming the first Chinese LLM to top the leaderboard of Huggingface, a platform where tech firms share LLMs, which are then rated for performance and popularity.
The move towards open-source LLMs has become a trend among Chinese startups, with 01.AI joining others like Zhipu AI and Baichuan Technology. Zhipu AI, founded in 2019, has reportedly surpassed a $1 billion valuation, while eight-month-old Baichuan Technology achieved a valuation of $1.2 billion after its fundraising in October.
The open-source debate in the AI community has drawn attention from major players like OpenAI, the maker of the popular chatbot ChatGPT. OpenAI has opted to keep the codes of its models tightly guarded, expressing concerns about potential misuse by malicious actors, which could pose risks to society.
In contrast, Chinese tech giant Alibaba’s cloud arm has actively embraced open-sourcing LLMs. Its latest LLM, Qwen-72B, secured the top spot on Huggingface’s leaderboard, marking the second Chinese model to achieve this feat. Alibaba Cloud, committed to open-sourcing its AI models, believes in the critical importance of building an open-source ecosystem to foster the development of LLM and AI applications.
Jingren Zhou, the Chief Technology Officer of Alibaba Cloud, emphasized the company’s commitment to openness and accessibility, stating, “Building up an open-source ecosystem is critical to promoting the development of LLM and AI applications building.”
Alibaba Cloud is not only making its own models open-source but also supporting smaller startups in the open-source AI LLM space, including the likes of 01.AI. The collaboration involves aspects such as model training and deployment processes.
As the hunger for AI applications continues to grow across various industries, developers, and businesses, Alibaba Cloud aims to position itself as the most open cloud, making generative AI capabilities accessible to a wider audience. The company’s support for startups like 01.AI in the ongoing fundraising round reflects its dedication to nurturing innovation and collaboration within the rapidly evolving landscape of open-source AI.
In the midst of this fundraising drive and the ongoing global dialogue around the openness of AI models, 01.AI is poised to play a pivotal role in shaping the future of AI development, with its commitment to openness and collaboration echoing the broader industry trend.