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Perplexity’s $500M Raise, GitHub’s Free Copilot Access, and SandboxAQ’s $300M Funding

Author

Stefan
December 19, 2024

Hi there,

Today’s AI highlights include Perplexity AI securing $500M and acquiring RAG startup Carbon, GitHub making Copilot free for millions of developers, and SandboxAQ raising over $300M to revolutionize quantum technology. Meanwhile, Menlo Ventures and Anthropic debut the $100M Anthology Fund with 18 promising AI startups. Here’s the latest in AI innovation and investments.

Today’s top stories

Perplexity AI has announced a $500 million funding round, elevating its valuation to $9 billion, alongside the acquisition of Carbon, a startup specializing in retrieval-augmented generation technology. Read more

Menlo Ventures, in partnership with Anthropic, has announced the first cohort of 18 companies backed by the $100 million Anthology Fund, focusing on real-world AI applications across various sectors. Read more

The European Data Protection Board has issued guidance on how AI developers can use personal data to create AI models while adhering to EU privacy regulations, addressing complexities such as anonymity, legitimate interests, and the legality of using unlawfully processed data. Read more

GitHub has announced that its Copilot service is now available for free in Visual Studio Code, allowing 150 million developers to access up to 2,000 code completions and 50 chat messages monthly. This move aligns with GitHub's tradition of providing free resources to the developer community. Read more

SandboxAQ Raises Over $300 Million, Valued at $5.6 Billion

SandboxAQ, focusing on quantum technology in AI, secured over $300 million in funding, aiming to enhance its technology and expand its team. Chaired by Eric Schmidt, the company was spun out from Alphabet Inc. and generates revenue in sectors like biopharma and life sciences. Read more

Today’s AI news is right below the AI Spotlight. If you are reading this and you are not already subscribed, here’s the link.

AI Spotlight: Black Forest Labs 

Frontier AI Lab offers a suite of advanced generative AI tools under the FLUX brand, specializing in state-of-the-art image generation. Read more

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