(Reuters) – Microsoft Corp said on Monday it might invest more in OpenAI, staking its future on the startup and tech behind the chatbot sensation ChatGPT, in addition to setting the stage for more competition with its rival Alphabet Inc’s Google.
Recently touting a revolution in artificial intelligence (AI), Microsoft is constructing on a bet it made nearly 4 years ago on OpenAI. In 2019 it dedicated $1 billion for the startup co-founded by Elon Musk and investor Sam Altman, and has since built a supercomputer to power OpenAI’s technology, amongst other types of support.
In a blog post, Microsoft said, “Today, we’re announcing the third phase of our long-term partnership with OpenAI through a multiyear, multibillion dollar investment to speed up AI breakthroughs to make sure these advantages are broadly shared with the world.”
A Microsoft spokesperson declined to comment on the terms of the investment, which some media outlets earlier reported could be $10 billion.
Microsoft is committing much more resources to maintain the 2 corporations on the forefront via so-called generative AI, technology that may learn from vast data tips on how to create virtually any style of content simply from a text prompt. OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which produces prose or poetry on command, is the prime example that last 12 months gained widespread attention in Silicon Valley.
Microsoft last week said it aimed to imbue such AI into all its products, as OpenAI continues to pursue the creation of human-like intelligence for machines. Microsoft is already adding OpenAI’s tech to Bing, its search engine that for the primary time in years is being discussed as a possible rival to Google, the industry leader.
The widely anticipated investment shows how Microsoft is locked in competition with Google, the inventor of key AI research that is now planning its own unveil for this spring, an individual acquainted with the matter previously told.
(Reporting By Jeffrey Dastin in Palo Alto, Calif.; Additional reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri, Kirsten Donovan)
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