Canadian AI startup Cohere has announced it will take over Heidelberg-based Aleph Alpha in an attempt to reduce the countries’ reliance on US technology.
The merger, announced earlier today, will see the new company retaining Nvidia-backed Cohere’s name, with headquarters in both Germany and Canada.
The terms of the deal were not made public. People familiar with the matter told the Financial Times that the Aleph Alpha shareholders will receive one Cohere share for every nine shares held.
The merger has the support of both the Canadian and German governments, and will aim to provide both with sovereign AI that does not rely on US companies. Cohere said the new company plans to deliver a secure alternative for customised AI in highly-regulated sectors, including the public sector, finance, defence, energy, manufacturing, telecommunications, and healthcare.
Citing a McKinsey study from March, Cohere said that the market for AI services is expected to surpass $1 trillion annually, with sovereign AI needs making up $600 billion of that.
“Built on the bedrock of shared Canadian and German values – where privacy, security, and responsible innovation are paramount – we are uniquely positioned to be the world’s trusted AI partner,” said Aidan Gomez, Cohere’s cofounder and chief executive.
“Together, we will give enterprises and governments across Canada, Europe, and the world the technology to move from exploration to rapid, secure implementation, with the absolute certainty that their data remains their own.”
As part of the partnership, Cohere will also partner with the companies of Schwarz Group, a German multinational retailer that operates under the Lidl and Kaufland brands, to deploy a “sovereign offering” on its cloud service STACKIT. In addition, Schwarz Group intends to back the company’s upcoming series E funding round with a $500 million structured financing commitment.
