Dear reader,
Elon Musk’s AI startup, xAI, has secured a monumental US$6 billion in Series B funding from Valor Equity Partners, Vy Capital, and Andreessen Horowitz, marking a significant milestone for the company founded in July 2023.
This capital infusion, following a report of a potential US$6.5 billion round, will enable xAI to advance its infrastructure and product lineup. xAI’s flagship product, Grok, a rival to ChatGPT, is now open-source, emphasising Musk’s commitment to “truth-seeking” AI technology.
This move sets xAI apart from competitors like Alphabet and Microsoft-backed OpenAI. Notably, Musk has also legally challenged OpenAI for straying from its original open-source mission.
The fresh funding position xAI among elite startups attracting substantial investment, mirroring recent significant raises like Alibaba’s US$1 billion investment in Moonshot AI and Alpha Intelligence Capital’s US$250 million fund.
xAI’s upcoming product announcements are highly anticipated, promising to further disrupt the AI landscape.
Sainul,
Editor.
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NEWS
Musk’s startup xAI nets US$6B to take on rivals like OpenAI
The investors include Valor Equity Partners, Vy Capital, and Andreessen Horowitz; xAI has developed Grok, a ChatGPT rival powered partly by data from X; The AI startup has now made the Grok-1 model open-source to spur further improvements.
aCommerce cut net loss by half, grew revenue 18% in 2023
The Thai e-commerce enabler posted a total revenue of US$200M for 2023; Meanwhile, its net loss narrowed by 54.9% to US$4.6M during the same period even though the company increased its total expenses by 14%.
Prominent ByteDance investor preps new US$300M AI-centered fund
Source Code Capital, founded by former Sequoia China investor Cao Yi, holds roughly US$5B across its yuan and dollar funds; Aside from ByteDance, it has also invested in the likes of food delivery platform Meituan and electric scooter manufacturer Niu.
Google to invest US$350M in India’s Flipkart, valuing co at US$37B
Flipkart has been a source of IPO speculation since Walmart took over the company, which competes with Amazon.com in India; Earlier this month, executives at Walmart said they are “looking and exploring” for the right time for Flipkart’s IPO.
AVPN, Google.org launch US$15M fund to equip workers in APAC with AI skills
The AI Opportunity Fund will identify and select non-profits and social enterprises that reach out to the workers impacted by the workforce transitions caused by AI.
India’s Zypp Electric nets US$15M to expand EV fleet
Japan’s Eneos led the Series C round; Zypp aims to make last-mile delivery sustainable and emission-free through its fleet of 21K electric scooters; The electric-vehicle-as-a-service provider aims to raise US$50M in total for the round.
Y Combinator’s Garry Tan supports some AI regulation but warns against AI monopolies
Tan said he was “overall supportive” of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) attempt to construct a GenAI risk mitigation framework.
Gate.io arm shelves HK crypto license application amid regulatory hurdles
It’s now the third firm tied to a global exchange to back out from the market’s rigorous regulations; Consequently, Gate.HK has paused new user registrations, deposits, and promotions in Hong Kong.
Vietnam’s proptech startup WeSale bags seed capital from Hitseries CapitalHitseries Capital
WeSale is proptech platform connecting partners, individuals and organisations to project owners and developers; The startup will use the money to develop and upgrade the platform, expand markets and develop new products and services.
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