Top Dollar Investments Targeting AI Startups

Google Ventures Expands Investment Team with former IBM VC Partner

GV, backed by Google's parent company Alphabet Inc., has brought in Michael McBride from software firm GitLab as a new general partner.

His focus will be on early-stage startups, particularly those that cater to enterprise customers using open-source and AI-driven approaches. Given that open-source and AI technologies are increasingly pivotal in financial sectors, including alternative finance, this move could indicate emerging trends and investment opportunities in these areas.

OpenAI's Startup Fund to invest $1 million in each startup in their Converge-2 program

Converge II aims to support entrepreneurs who are starting their AI technology journeys. It aims to invest in a wide range of AI opportunities across different sectors.

OpenAI emphasizes many benefits for startups becoming portfolio companies, including its value chain, the opportunity of working with OpenAI's research and resources, and the broader OpenAI community.

While Amazon has agreed to invest up to $4 billion in the AI startup Anthropic.

Our Opinion:

AI startup sector is experiencing a remarkable influx of investments, with venture capitalists and major tech companies alike recognizing the potential and competitiveness of this rapidly evolving field.

For Alternative Funders, this highlights a key direction in which venture capital is heading. It is a call-to-action to revisit their investment strategies and consider if their portfolios are well-positioned to capitalize on the growing influence of AI and open source in the future economy. It also urges them to consider the potential downsides, monopolistic tendencies, ethical implications and the risk of concentrating too much on one sector over others.

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How to Stop Dropbox from Sharing Your Personal Files with OpenAI Dropbox's new data sharing policy where it shares personal files with OpenAI for machine learning research, alarming privacy advocates. It discusses potential implications for consumers and provides step-by-step instructions on changing Dropbox settings to prevent such shared access.

Microsoft and Labor Unions Unite to Tackle AI-induced Job Fears with Comprehensive AI Training Anxiety over AI disrupting the labor market and leading to job losses is magnifying, and Microsoft aims to tackle this through education. This project seeks to address the skill gap caused by the rise of AI and increase general understanding of AI tech's potential impact on the job market.

OpenAI's AI News Chatbot Pioneers News Delivery with Axel Springer A German media house, Axel Springer, to provide news using ChatGPT, a conversational AI model. The partnership is a stepping stone towards the integration of AI-based solutions in the news delivery process.

Accenture and Google Cloud's partnership to launch a joint Generative AI Center of Excellence aimed to deliver rapid prototyping and accelerated value for clients by using Google Cloud's AI technologies. The center will focus on key industry verticals, including healthcare, life sciences, communications, media, technology, and public service.

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