OpenAI, one of the leading AI companies, has established a fund to invest in AI startups, in partnership with Microsoft.
OpenAI was co-founded by Elon Musk. Musk has long been a critic of AI, believing it represents one of the biggest existential threats humanity faces. OpenAI was founded with the goal of developing AI in a safe, responsible way.
The OpenAI Startup Fund is a $100 million fund to help AI startups that can have a profoundly positive impact on the world. The fund was announced by OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman at Microsoft Build 2021.
“This is not a typical corporate venture fund,” said Altman. “We plan to make big, early bets on a relatively small number of companies, probably not more than 10. And we’re looking for startups in fields where AI can have the most profound, positive impact, like healthcare, climate change and education. We’re also excited about markets where AI can drive big leaps in productivity, like personal assistants and semantic search.
“We think that helping people be more productive with new tools is a big deal, and we can imagine brand-new interfaces that weren’t possible a year ago. These aren’t the only applications we’ll consider, but they’re at the top of our target list.”