- Amazon Web Services (AWS) will offer startups cloud storage for free for using AI developed by companies like Meta and Anthropic.
- Amazon concluded its US$4 billion investment in Anthropic last week.
- Amazon isn’t the only major cloud provider offering free credits to attract AI startups.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) will now allow its free credits programme for startups to cover the use of major AI models from other providers, including Meta, Mistral AI, and Cohere, in addition to its own AI platform Bedrock.
US$4 billion investment in Anthropic
Amazon closed its $4 billion investment in Anthropic last week, as part of the deal, Anthropic will use AWS as its primary cloud provider, and Trainium and Inferentia chips to build and train its models.
Howard Wright, vice president and global head of startups at AWS said Amazon’s free credit will contribute to the revenue of Anthropic, one of the most popular models on Bedrock.
Also read: Amazon adds $2.75 billion investment to AI company Anthropic
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Investment of other startups
Amazon says it has extended more than US$6 billion in credit to startups over the past 10 years. The company plans to provide half a million dollars in credit to Y Combinator’s latest January startup, according to Reuters.
Amazon isn’t the first company to offer free cloud credits for startups. Google is offering up to US$350,000 in credits and International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) offers credits in a trial period. These credits can be used on AI models and Amazon’s chips.
