Last Updated: November 13, 2023, 07:30 IST
Google’s AI push might additional enhance from this funding
Alphabet’s Google is in talks to take a position tons of of thousands and thousands of {dollars} in Character.AI, just like Microsoft’s funding in OpenAI for constructing ChatGPT
(Reuters) – Alphabet’s Google is in talks to take a position tons of of thousands and thousands of {dollars} in Character.AI, because the quick rising synthetic intelligence chatbot startup seeks capital to coach fashions and sustain with person demand, two sources briefed on the matter instructed Reuters.
The funding, which may very well be structured as convertible notes, in line with a 3rd supply, will deepen the present partnership Character.AI already has with Google, through which it makes use of Google’s cloud providers and Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) to coach fashions.
Google and Character AI didn’t reply to requests for remark.
Founded by former Google workers Noam Shazeer and Daniel De Freitas, Character.AI permits individuals to talk with digital variations of celebrities like Billie Eilish or anime characters, whereas creating their very own chatbots and AI assistants. It is free to make use of, however affords subscription mannequin that expenses $9.99 a month for customers who wish to skip the digital line to entry a chatbot.
Character.AI’s chatbots, with varied roles and tones to select from, have appealed to customers ages 18 to 24, who contributed about 60% of its web site site visitors, in line with knowledge from Similarweb. The demographic helps the corporate place itself because the purveyor of extra enjoyable private AI companions, in comparison with different AI chatbots from OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Bard.
The firm beforehand mentioned its web site had attracted 100 million month-to-month visits within the first six months since its launch.
Character.AI can also be in talks to lift fairness funding from enterprise capital traders, which might worth the corporate at over $5 billion, sources mentioned. In March, it raised $150 million in a funding spherical led by Andreessen Horowitz at $1 billion valuation.
The talks with Google are ongoing and phrases of the deal might change, mentioned the sources, who requested anonymity because the discussions are personal.
Google has been investing in AI startups, together with $2 billion for mannequin maker Anthropic within the type of convertible notes, on prime of its earlier fairness funding. Anthropic makes use of Google’s cloud providers in addition to its newest model of TPUs.
That is a part of a current pattern through which huge tech cloud providers suppliers are putting offers with AI firms to entice them to make use of sure cloud or {hardware} within the pc-intensive race to construct fashions and serve shoppers, together with Microsoft investments in OpenAI and Google and Amazon’s bets on Anthropic.
U.S. Federal Trade Commission chair Lina Khan mentioned at an occasion in San Francisco final week that the company is wanting into cloud supplier investments in AI startups to look at any anti-aggressive behaviors.
(This story has not been edited by News18 workers and is revealed from a syndicated information company feed – Reuters)
