Meta Platforms, the parent company of Facebook, has developed a powerful AI system called Llama 2 that competes with other language models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Bard. In a surprising move, Meta plans to offer a commercial version of Llama 2 for free, allowing startups and businesses to access this AI technology at no cost, giving them a competitive edge similar to ChatGPT and Bard.
The new version of Llama 2 will be distributed through Microsoft’s Azure cloud service and will be compatible with the Windows operating system. Microsoft is considered Meta’s “preferred partner” for this release. Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, announced that Llama 2 will be available for both research and commercial use.
Meta has been making significant strides in the AI field, but it has faced tough competition from other tech giants, especially with the popularity of ChatGPT. Generative AI tools capable of creating new content, such as prose and images, have gained considerable attention and interest.
One of the key differentiators for Meta is its commitment to openness and sharing data and code to allow external researchers to address potential bias and toxicity issues. Zuckerberg believes that making Llama 2 open-source will foster innovation and improve safety and security in AI applications.
However, the research paper introducing Llama 2 reveals less transparency compared to Meta’s previous work. The model was trained on a mix of publicly available data, but the sources used were not specified, except for the exclusion of personal information from certain websites.
Overall, Meta’s move to provide Llama 2 for free through Microsoft’s platform is likely to have a significant impact on the AI landscape, providing businesses with a cost-effective AI solution and promoting further advancements in the field.