Amazon offers free credits to startups to use AI models including Anthropic

Amazon Web Services (AWS) said in an interview with Reuters that it has expanded its free credits program for startups to cover the cost of using major artificial intelligence models in an effort to increase the market share of its artificial intelligence platform Bedrock.

To attract startup customers, Amazon now allows its cloud credits to cover the use of models from other providers, including Anthropic, Meta, Mistral AI and Cohere.

“This is another gift we’re giving back to the startup ecosystem in exchange for our hope that startups will continue to choose AWS as their first stop,” said Howard Wright, vice president and global head of startups at AWS.

Prior to this, Amazon has now completed a $4 billion (approximately Rs. 33,383 crore) convertible note investment in Anthropic. As part of the deal, Anthropic will use AWS as its primary cloud provider and Trainium and Inferentia chips to build and train its models.

Wright said the free Amazon credits will help revenue for Anthropic, one of the most popular models on Bedrock.

“This is part of ecosystem building. We’re unapologetic about it,” he said, adding that AWS offers startups broad choice and security.

Amazon said it has provided more than $6 billion (roughly Rs. 50,080 crore) in credit to startups over the past decade.

It partnered with Y Combinator to offer $500,000 (roughly Rs. 41 crore) in credits for its latest batch launched in January, which can be used on AI models and Amazon’s chips. For startups, the cost of using AI can escalate depending on usage.

Amazon isn’t the only major cloud provider offering free credits to attract AI startups. Microsoft Azure offers credits that can be used on OpenAI models, while Google’s cloud credits can be used on more than 130 models on Vertex AI.

Big tech companies’ investments in artificial intelligence startups have come under regulatory scrutiny as the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) launches investigations into Microsoft’s support for OpenAI and Google and Amazon’s investments in Anthropic.

© Thomson Reuters 2024