Cohere raises $500M, doubles valuation to $6.8B with AMD, Nvidia, Salesforce backing.

Cohere, a Toronto-based AI model maker, has raised $500 million in an oversubscribed round, bringing its valuation to $6.8 billion. The company offers secure Large Language Model (LLM) models specifically for enterprise use and has partnerships with major names like Oracle, Dell, and SAP. The round was led by Radical Ventures and Inovia Capital, with participation from existing investors including AMD Ventures, Nvidia, and Salesforce Ventures.

Toronto-based AI model maker Cohere has successfully raised $500 million in an oversubscribed funding round, bringing its valuation to $6.8 billion. The round was led by Radical Ventures and Inovia Capital, with participation from existing investors including AMD Ventures, NVIDIA, and Salesforce Ventures [1].

Cohere specializes in developing secure Large Language Model (LLM) models tailored for enterprise use. The company has partnerships with major names like Oracle, Dell, and SAP, positioning itself as a key player in the AI market. The latest funding will be used to advance agentic AI, helping businesses and governments operate more efficiently [1].

The funding round comes amid a broader surge in AI financing, as private equity and Big Tech companies channel capital into startups in pursuit of strong returns from innovative AI products. Cohere's latest product, North, is an AI agent platform designed to help knowledge workers with tasks such as document summarization [1].

Joelle Pineau, former Vice President of AI Research at Meta, has been appointed as Cohere's Chief AI Officer. Pineau will oversee AI strategy across the company's research, product, and policy teams. Her appointment signals Cohere's commitment to revamping its AI efforts and improving its research and product pipeline [2].

Cohere's focus on real-world, enterprise applications sets it apart from competitors like OpenAI and Meta, which are primarily focused on general AI models. Pineau, who previously oversaw research at Meta's FAIR lab, believes there is significant room for practical AI models to enhance productivity in various industries [2].

The company's latest product, North, allows enterprises and government agencies to deploy AI agents privately on their own infrastructure. This secure deployment model is particularly attractive to banks and federal organizations handling sensitive data [2].

Cohere's competitive landscape includes open-source providers like DeepSeek and Meta, whose models can also be run locally at a lower cost. However, Cohere is betting that its additional support and security features will give it an edge [2].

The recent hiring of Pineau and the successful funding round indicate Cohere's strategic positioning in the AI market. The company aims to leverage its unique strengths in enterprise AI to capture a significant share of the market [1, 2].

References:
[1] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/ai-startup-cohere-valued-6-160547472.html
[2] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/cohere-hires-long-time-meta-140000607.html