Ant Group Leads Investment in AI Firm MetaSota
Ant Group has led a funding round of over RMB 100 million ($13.9 million) for MetaSota, a low-profile Chinese artificial intelligence company. This investment raises MetaSota’s valuation to $150 million and marks the fintech giant's latest addition to its growing AI portfolio. Although tech giants Baidu and Tencent considered participating, Ant Group sealed the deal alongside Lightspeed China Partners. MetaSota, founded by Min Kerui in 2018, specializes in AI products such as legal translation tools and article generation software. The company recently gained significant traction with its AI-powered search tool, which recorded over 7 million visits in March, ranking it as the third most-used AI product in China behind Baidu’s ERNIE Bot and Moonshot AI’s Kimi. This transaction highlights Ant Group's aggressive strategy in the AI sector, having invested in at least six Chinese AI firms since the ChatGPT boom began, including ZhipuAI, Moonshot AI, and MoffettAI. While the investment amount is smaller than those secured by some rivals, it underscores continued confidence in specialized AI applications within the Chinese market.
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Ant Group Leads Investment in AI Firm MetaSota
Ant Group has led a funding round of over RMB 100 million ($13.9 million) for MetaSota, a low-profile Chinese artificial intelligence company. This investment raises MetaSota’s valuation to $150 million and marks the fintech giant's latest addition to its growing AI portfolio. Although tech giants Baidu and Tencent considered participating, Ant Group sealed the deal alongside Lightspeed China Partners. MetaSota, founded by Min Kerui in 2018, specializes in AI products such as legal translation tools and article generation software. The company recently gained significant traction with its AI-powered search tool, which recorded over 7 million visits in March, ranking it as the third most-used AI product in China behind Baidu’s ERNIE Bot and Moonshot AI’s Kimi. This transaction highlights Ant Group's aggressive strategy in the AI sector, having invested in at least six Chinese AI firms since the ChatGPT boom began, including ZhipuAI, Moonshot AI, and MoffettAI. While the investment amount is smaller than those secured by some rivals, it underscores continued confidence in specialized AI applications within the Chinese market.
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