SK Telecom’s $100 million investment in Anthropic signals a strategic effort to bolster its telecommunications-focused AI ventures. Anthropic, known for its competitive AI models, will collaborate with SK Telecom to develop a telecommunications-oriented multilingual large language model and a robust AI platform. This investment aligns with SK Telecom’s commitment to advancing AI innovation within the telecommunications realm and enhancing its technological offerings.
14 August 2023 – South Korea’s leading telecommunications giant, SK Telecom (017670.KS), has announced a significant investment of $100 million in the U.S. artificial intelligence company Anthropic. This strategic move aims to fortify SK Telecom’s presence in the domain of telecommunications-centered AI endeavors.
Anthropic, a pioneering startup that competes alongside OpenAI in constructing foundational AI models, has emerged as one of the most well-funded AI companies, securing $450 million from esteemed investors such as Google’s parent company, Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL.O), and Spark Capital in May of this year.
The partnership between SK Telecom and Anthropic is founded on a shared vision to develop a globally-oriented, multilingual large language model tailored to the telecommunications industry. Additionally, the collaboration will foster the creation of a robust AI platform with a strong emphasis on telecommunications applications.
While SK Telecom previously made a smaller investment in Anthropic in May, the telecommunications giant remains reticent about the exact magnitude of its prior investment and the extent of its ownership stake in Anthropic.
Founded in 2021 by former executives of OpenAI, Anthropic has quickly gained prominence in the AI landscape. Its Claude models have emerged as formidable competitors to OpenAI’s GPT-4, reflecting Anthropic’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of AI innovation.
This move comes on the heels of SK Telecom’s strategic alliance with Deutsche Telekom, e& (Eins und Eins), and Singapore Telecommunications (Singtel) in July. The collaboration is geared towards joint development efforts in telecommunications-driven AI businesses, marking SK Telecom’s proactive endeavors in pioneering the intersection of telecommunications and artificial intelligence.
SK Telecom’s substantial investment in Anthropic underscores its dedication to driving AI advancements in the telecommunications sector, reflecting the company’s pursuit of innovation and the enhancement of its service offerings. – reference: Reuters
