Technology
Thursday, December 21st, 2023 5:18 pm EDT
Key Points
- Fundraising and Valuation: Anthropic, a startup founded by former employees of OpenAI, is reportedly in talks to secure a $750 million funding round led by Menlo Ventures. If successful, this funding would value Anthropic at up to $18.4 billion, representing a significant increase from its earlier valuation of $4.1 billion earlier in the year. The round is considered a substantial step for the company and follows earlier funding rounds in April and May that raised a combined $750 million.
- Key Investors and Collaborations: Anthropic, founded in 2021, has attracted funding from major companies including Google, Salesforce, and Zoom. Google, in particular, has shown significant interest in Anthropic, taking a 10% stake in the company during a funding round in May. In October, Google committed to investing up to $2 billion in Anthropic, further solidifying the partnership with a $500 million upfront cash infusion and an additional $1.5 billion to be invested over time.
- Technological Advancements and Chatbot Development: Anthropic is known for developing Claude 2, a chatbot that competes with OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Claude 2 is used by notable companies such as Salesforce-owned Slack, Notion, and Quora. Notably, Claude 2 stands out for its ability to summarize up to about 75,000 words, a capability significantly beyond that of ChatGPT, which handles around 3,000 words. Anthropic’s technological advancements, particularly in the development of reliable chatbots, have positioned it as a key player in the rapidly growing market for large language models. The company, led by founders Dario Amodei and Daniela Amodei, aims to capitalize on the increasing demand for advanced language models in various applications.
Anthropic, a startup founded by former employees of OpenAI, is reportedly in discussions to secure a $750 million funding round led by Menlo Ventures. The valuation of the company is anticipated to reach up to $18.4 billion, a substantial increase from its earlier valuation of $4.1 billion this year. Anthropic, established in 2021 and backed by major companies like Google, Salesforce, and Zoom, had previously raised $750 million in funding rounds in April and May. Google, in October, committed to investing up to $2 billion in Anthropic, with a $500 million initial cash infusion and an additional $1.5 billion to be invested over time.
The startup is known for developing Claude 2, a chatbot competitor to OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Claude 2 is utilized by companies including Salesforce-owned Slack, Notion, and Quora. Distinguishing itself, Claude 2 can summarize up to around 75,000 words, significantly surpassing the capabilities of ChatGPT, which handles approximately 3,000 words. Anthropic was co-founded by Dario Amodei, the former vice president of research at OpenAI, and his sister Daniela Amodei, the former vice president of safety and policy at OpenAI. Arthur AI, a machine learning monitoring platform, found Claude 2 to be the most reliable chatbot in terms of “self-awareness,” accurately assessing what it knows and responding only to questions supported by training data.
Daniela Amodei noted that Anthropic invested at least two months in developing Claude 2, involving a team of 30 to 35 individuals directly working on the AI model and a total of 150 people supporting the effort. She emphasized the rapid growth in the demand for large language models, stating that there is ample room for multiple players to succeed in the market. The landscape is broad, accommodating various users and use cases for these systems, reflecting the dynamic and expanding nature of the industry. Anthropic’s funding rounds and collaborations with major tech companies underline the significant interest and investment in advanced AI technologies.
For the full original article on CNBC, please click here: https://www.cnbc.com/2023/12/21/openai-rival-anthropic-in-talks-to-raise-750-million-funding-round.html
