Amazon is building a LLM to rival OpenAI and Google

Amazon is reportedly making substantial investments in the development of a large language model (LLM) named Olympus. 

According to Reuters, the tech giant is pouring millions into this project to create a model with a staggering two trillion parameters. OpenAI’s GPT-4, for comparison, is estimated to have around one trillion parameters.

This move puts Amazon in direct competition with OpenAI, Meta, Anthropic, Google, and others. The team behind Amazon’s initiative is led by Rohit Prasad, former head of Alexa, who now reports directly to CEO Andy Jassy.

Prasad, as the head scientist of artificial general intelligence (AGI) at Amazon, has unified AI efforts across the company. He brought in researchers from the Alexa AI team and Amazon’s science division to collaborate on training models, aligning Amazon’s resources towards this ambitious goal.

Amazon’s decision to invest in developing homegrown models stems from the belief that having their own LLMs could enhance the attractiveness of their offerings, particularly on Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Enterprises on AWS are constantly seeking top-performing models and Amazon’s move aims to cater to the growing demand for advanced AI technologies.

While Amazon has not provided a specific timeline for the release of the Olympus model, insiders suggest that the company’s focus on training larger AI models underscores its commitment to remaining at the forefront of AI research and development.

Training such massive AI models is a costly endeavour, primarily due to the significant computing power required.

Amazon’s decision to invest heavily in LLMs is part of its broader strategy, as revealed in an earnings call in April. During the call, Amazon executives announced increased investments in LLMs and generative AI while reducing expenditures on retail fulfillment and transportation.

Amazon’s move signals a new chapter in the race for AI supremacy, with major players vying to push the boundaries of the technology.

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