OpenAI on May 11 said it created an independent entity called OpenAI Deployment Company and acquired Tomoro, an AI consulting and engineering firm, to help organizations build and deploy AI systems. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
The new company will focus on enterprise customers and on speeding real-world AI deployment. OpenAI said it is meant to help organizations build and deploy AI systems, a sign of a deeper push beyond consumer products. [1, 2, 4, 5]
The venture will include about 150 forward-deployed or deployment engineers from Tomoro. OpenAI said the Tomoro team will help staff the new company as it works with large customers. [1, 2, 3, 4]
Several reports said the company launched with more than $4 billion in initial investment and a $10 billion pre-money valuation. Other reports said OpenAI is investing more than $4 billion to create the company. [2, 3, 5]
Backers cited in reports included more than 19 companies and investors, among them Goldman Sachs, Brookfield and Bain Capital. Other accounts named TPG, Bain Capital and SoftBank, while some also listed McKinsey and Capgemini among the supporters. [1, 2, 3, 4]
OpenAI executives and industry figures cast the bet as a services play for enterprise buyers. Aaron Levie, chief executive of Box, said, "That's an insane amount of technical and domain-specific process work to be done to make this all happen," while Sunny Madra, vice president of hardware at Nvidia, said, "Services and solutions are the key to winning the hearts of enterprises." [2]
Business Insider said the announcement was made on Monday. [2]
