French artificial intelligence startup Mistral AI has announced a significant milestone, successfully raising 600 million euros, which is approximately 640 million dollars, in a Series B funding round. This substantial capital injection, reported by TechCrunch on Tuesday, June 11th, propels the company’s valuation to an impressive $6 billion, just about a year after its initial seed funding. The Series B round was spearheaded by prominent investment firm General Catalyst.
Neither Mistral AI nor General Catalyst has issued immediate responses to requests for comments. However, in a statement provided to TechCrunch, Mistral AI’s co-founder and CEO, Arthur Mensch, highlighted the participation of both new and existing investors in this round, all united in supporting the company’s ambitious growth trajectory.
Mensch stated, “This new round positions us uniquely to advance the frontiers of AI and democratize access to state-of-the-art technology. It also ensures the company’s ongoing independence, which remains firmly under the founders’ control.”
This latest funding round marks a considerable increase in Mistral AI’s valuation. In December, following a $415 million raise, the company was valued at approximately $2 billion. Prior to that, in June 2023, Mistral AI had already made headlines with a $113 million seed funding round, then considered the largest ever in Europe. Notably, Mistral AI was established just weeks before this initial funding success.
The foundation of Mistral AI is built upon the expertise of AI veterans from tech giants Google and Meta. Reflecting on the seed funding round, Mensch emphasized the growing recognition of AI’s transformative potential and the crucial need for Europe to actively participate in its development, both as a regulator, customer, and investor.
Mistral AI unveiled its inaugural generative AI model, Mistral 7B, in September. The company emphasized its development of more efficient and cost-effective training methodologies.
Image alt text: The Mistral AI team, a diverse group of experts in artificial intelligence, celebrating their successful 640 million dollar Series B funding round, showcasing their collaborative spirit and innovative drive.
In May, Mistral AI expanded its product suite by introducing generative AI software capable of generating computer code, named Codestral. This model is trained on a comprehensive dataset encompassing over 80 programming languages.
Image alt text: Codestral AI model interface by Mistral AI, demonstrating its code generation capabilities across multiple programming languages, highlighting its advanced features for developers.
Further strengthening its strategic expansion, also in May, Mistral AI announced the appointment of Marjorie Janiewicz as the General Manager for the United States. Janiewicz is tasked with enhancing the company’s market presence in the US and spearheading its American operations. She brings 23 years of experience in building and scaling revenue teams globally, with previous leadership roles at Foursquare and Hackerone.
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