Yesterday’s big news was Google’s plan blow away its traditional search In favor of an AI-powered experience – but Google isn’t the only company planning the next generation of searchability.
This morning, Bloomberg has news Andreessen-backed Axa Labs, which has raised $250 million at a $2.5 billion valuation, to go into the same market. And it’s part of a wave of startups pursuing AI discovery, which has quietly become one of the most attractive targets in consumer AI.
From Bloomberg:
Axa is part of a wave of startups that are trying to transform the search industry, including Twily, Tinyfish and Parallel Web Systems. Led by former Twitter Chief Executive Parag Agarwal, Parallels recently raised $100 million at a valuation of $2 billion in a round led by venture firm Sequoia Capital, according to the Wall Street Journal.
At the same time, we are also looking at traditional technology platforms Amazon, Linkedin And reddit Looking to AI to improve their search and discoverability features – so there will be plenty of potential acquirers if a startup starts selling.
The biggest competitor is ChatGate, which still owns the interface layer and, before the Google launch, was handling the vast majority of AI-powered searches occurring on any given day. But OpenAI may not prioritize search and Google has an advertising business to protect, which may leave room for a smaller lab like Exa or Parallel to carve out a niche for itself.
