A French start-up founded four weeks ago by a trio of former Meta and Google artificial intelligence researchers has raised €105mn in Europe’s largest-ever seed round.
Mistral AI’s first round of financing values the Paris-based concern at €240mn, including the funds raised, according to people close to the company. The record amount raised highlights the growing frenzy surrounding AI and Europe’s desire to create a viable alternative to Silicon Valley companies such as Microsoft-backed OpenAI and Google’s DeepMind.
“There is a rising awareness of the fact that this technology is transformative and Europe needs to do something about it, both as a regulator, as a customer and an investor,” said Arthur Mensch, Mistral’s chief executive.
Read the full story on the Financial Times here.