Noted semiconductor and telecommunications equipment company Qualcomm this week announced the launch of the Qualcomm Ventures AI Fund to invest up to an aggregate of $100 million in startups transforming artificial intelligence. The company announced that the fund would focus on startups that share the vision of on-device AI becoming more powerful and widespread, with an emphasis on those developing new technology for autonomous cars, robotics and machine learning platforms. This fund is to build on more than a decade of Qualcomm’s AI research and its heritage of developing the foundational building blocks of low power processing and connectivity, which are essential for AI.
Steve Mollenkopf, CEO of Qualcomm Incorporated, said in a statement, “At Qualcomm, we invent breakthrough technologies that transform how the world connects, computes, and communicates. For over a decade, Qualcomm has been investing in the future of machine learning. As a pioneer of on-device AI, we strongly believe intelligence is moving from the cloud to the edge. Qualcomm’s AI strategy couples leading 5G connectivity with our R&D, fueling AI to transform industries, business models and experiences.”
Qualcomm has set out to make on-device AI technology ubiquitous by inventing, developing, commercialising and, importantly, investing in it. As AI shifts towards the wireless edge – combining essential on-device capabilities with the edge cloud – the industry is already starting to see the full potential of 5G. Qualcomm’s ambitious 5G vision and strategic commitment to on-device AI goes hand in hand with mobile becoming the pervasive AI platform.
As part of the AI Fund, Qualcomm Ventures LLC participated in a Series A funding round for AnyVision, a noted face, body, and object recognition startup. This investment – the first one made by the AI fund – will further the startup’s efforts to expand into other industries and develop new AI applications that transform how the world connects, computes and communicates.
