On Wednesday, Nvidia-backed Together AI announced a significant milestone, securing $106 million in a VC funding round, marking a doubling of its valuation since the previous fall. Investors have shown keen interest in supporting startups capitalizing on the burgeoning generative AI trend, propelling Together AI’s rapid growth trajectory.
The VC funding round, spearheaded by Salesforce Ventures, valued Together AI at an impressive $1.25 billion. Notable participation came from Coatue Management, alongside existing investors such as Lux Capital and Emergence Capital.
Established in 2022, Together AI swiftly garnered attention for its provision of access to Nvidia’s coveted graphics processing units (GPUs). Evolving beyond its initial offerings, the company now endeavors to establish itself as a platform facilitating developers in building or tailoring their open-source AI models.
Rob Keith, Managing Director at Salesforce Ventures, who led the investment, emphasized the appeal of Together AI’s comprehensive suite of services, stating, “Customers come for the GPUs, but stay for the workflow services and research.”
According to Vipul Ved Prakash, CEO of Together AI, the infusion of new capital will be channeled towards securing additional computing power from cloud providers and bolstering the company’s research efforts to innovate new model architectures. Vipul Ved Prakash highlighted the company’s substantial growth, noting a burgeoning user base of 45,000 registered users, spanning from AI startups to multinational enterprises.
This latest funding round follows Together AI’s successful Series A funding in November, where it raised $102.5 million led by Kleiner Perkins, valuing the company at over $500 million, with participation from Nvidia, Reuters news report said.
The accelerated investments in AI startups since the advent of OpenAI’s ChatGPT underscore investors’ optimism towards firms positioned to harness the transformative potential of AI technology, potentially challenging industry incumbents.
