Elon Musk’s fledgling artificial intelligence company, X.AI, has ambitious plans to raise $1 billion in its latest funding round, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The newly-minted startup, founded just this year by Musk and a team of AI experts, has already attracted high-profile backers in its quest to develop general artificial intelligence surpassing human-level capabilities.
X.AI revealed little about how it plans to use the sizable $1 billion investment. However, the funds will likely be poured into further developing the company’s AI algorithms capable of mimicking human-like cognition. Musk has high hopes that X.AI’s technology will drive advancements in heavily impactful fields like healthcare and transportation.
The young company has already made strides in natural language processing and solving complex problems using its specialized hardware platform. X.AI’s mysterious products and services have peeked the interest of top VC firms like Sequoia Capital and Founders Fund.
Musk has not been shy about his ambition that X.AI will create “some of the most beneficial AI in the world.” Though he acknowledges development of advanced AI comes with risks, Musk remains confident the rewards outweigh the dangers.
X.AI’s fundraise signals heightened interest in the race to develop artificial general intelligence surpassing human intelligence. DeepMind, OpenAI and Google Brain are also pursuing this goal. The potential societal impacts of such powerful AI systems have sparked both excitement and concern.
While the full implications of advanced AI remain ambiguous, X.AI’s $1 billion funding round attests to the technology’s promise. With Musk at the helm and the financial means to match its ambitions, X.AI may soon take pole position in the artificial intelligence space.
