Researchers at India's AI4Bharat are raising $12 million from venture capital firms Peak XV and Lightspeed Venture for an artificial intelligence startup, according to three people familiar with the matter.
The larger-than-usual seed funding round underscores the
growing interest in generative AI, after OpenAI's ChatGPT dazzled users with
its ability to engage in human-like conversations. Most seed rounds are usually
up to $1 million to $2 million.
Vivek Raghavan and Pratyush Kumar, who worked on developing
AI models for speech recognition and translation at AI4Bharat, are launching a
new venture called Sarvam that will develop custom-made large language models
(LLMs) for India-centric use-cases, the sources said.
Peak XV and Lightspeed did not respond to Reuters requests
for comment.
LLMs are computer algorithms that understand and generate
text in a human-like fashion. They power virtual assistants widely in use on
smartphones and the Internet.
The move comes months after Indian-government backed
AI4Bharat unveiled a mobile assistant that aims to make information on
government schemes accessible in multiple languages.
The investment is among the first from Peak XV Partners
after rebranding from Sequoia Capital India and SEA following a split with its
US-based parent fund last month.
Peak XV's other AI investments include voice assistant firm
AI Rudder, computer vision firm Mad Street Den and enterprise marketing
platform Insider, according to its website.
The buzz around generative AI among both consumers and
businesses has helped related start-ups draw funding even as an uncertain
economy saps investments for other companies.
Indian AI start-ups have raised $583 million this year, as
of June, according to data from Venture Intelligence. They raised a total of
$2.45 billion last year. © Reuters
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