In a significant development for the field of artificial intelligence (AI), Paris-based Mistral AI has raised €450M (~$484 million) in a funding round, with a valuation of $2 billion. Mistral, co-founded by former employees of Google DeepMind and Meta, has not yet launched a product but had already closed one of Europe’s largest seed rounds. This latest funding round highlights Europe’s push to establish its presence and compete in the rapidly growing field of generative AI, which has previously been dominated by American ventures.
Key Takeaway
Mistral AI’s €450M funding round and its European competitors represent Europe’s ambition to establish its presence in the highly competitive field of generative AI. However, regulatory discussions pose challenges to AI development, and the outcome will significantly impact AI investments in Europe.
Mistral AI: A Catalyst for the Fight for AI Sovereignty
The success of Mistral AI underscores the larger battle for AI sovereignty, particularly in the European Union (EU), which aims to prevent being left behind in technological advancements while imposing regulations to guide AI development. Mistral and its European competitors are seen as crucial players in this fight, as they represent Europe’s opportunity to establish a foothold in generative AI, a field dominated by well-funded ventures in the United States.
However, Mistral’s funding raise has not been without controversy. Critics point out that the startup’s co-founders fit the homogenous, privileged profile of AI industry influencers, which has been widely criticized for its lack of diversity and inclusivity. This highlights a critical challenge within the industry that needs to be addressed for future progress.
European Regulation and the Future of AI Investments
The EU’s attempts to reach an agreement on policies to regulate AI systems have brought the entrepreneurship-regulation divide to the forefront. Mistral, along with other AI industry lobbyists, has advocated for a regulatory carve-out for generative AI models. However, EU lawmakers have resisted this exemption, indicating the complexities surrounding the regulation of AI. The outcome of these regulatory discussions will undoubtedly have a profound impact on AI investments in Europe and its ability to compete with established players like OpenAI.
Other Noteworthy News in the AI Space
- Meta and IBM Form AI Alliance: Meta, the social network, has joined forces with IBM to establish the AI Alliance, an industry body aimed at supporting “open innovation” and “open science” in AI.
- OpenAI’s Expansion into India: OpenAI is collaborating with Rishi Jaitly, former Twitter India head, to navigate the Indian government’s AI policy landscape and explore opportunities for setting up a local team.
- Google’s AI-Assisted Note-Taking: Google has launched its AI note-taking app, NotebookLM, which integrates with Gemini Pro, Google’s new large language model, to enhance document understanding and reasoning capabilities.
- Regulatory Scrutiny for OpenAI: The Competition and Markets Authority in the UK and the Federal Trade Commission in the US are investigating the partnership between OpenAI and Microsoft to assess potential anti-competitive behavior.
- Addressing Biases in AI Models: Researchers have discovered biases in open source image generator Stable Diffusion 2.1, highlighting the importance of being aware of and addressing biases in AI models.
