Decentralized AI network Sahara raises fresh capital in Samsung NEXT-backed round

By Manya Saini

(Reuters) - Sahara AI, a startup integrating the blockchain and artificial intelligence, said on Wednesday it raised $43 million in a funding round led by venture capital investors Pantera Capital, Binance Labs and Polychain Capital.

The series A funding also drew investments from Samsung NEXT alongside early-stage investor Matrix Partners, crypto investment fund dao5 and venture fund Geekcartel, among others.

The company did not disclose the valuation at which the latest round was raised.

WHY IT’S IMPORTANT 

Sahara AI aims to reward the users, data sources, and AI trainers crucial to the success of generative AI through its decentralized blockchain platform, unlike the current model which typically benefits the company that created it.

The company intends to use the funds to expand its global team, enhance the performance of its platform and grow its developer ecosystem.

Since its founding in April 2023, Sahara AI has collaborated with several high-profile tech firms including Microsoft, Amazon and Snap.

CONTEXT

Data forms the building block of generative AI to produce human-like creation, but the booming sector has come under scrutiny over concerns over fair use of data, copyright and privacy issues.

Meanwhile, the crypto and blockchain sector has also drawn significant interest from private investors this year amid a rally in the price of bitcoin after a prolonged dry spell due to industry volatility.

KEY QUOTES 

"There is often no transparency on how users’ proprietary models and agents are used by these centralized AI providers, and no protection or compensation for users’ contributions," Sahara AI’s co-Founder and CEO Sean Ren told Reuters.

"Ethical concerns over copyright, privacy, resource access, and economic imbalances continue to grow as AI becomes more widely adopted and capable."

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore)