AMI Labs, the new venture cofounded by Turing Prize winner Yann LeCun after he left Meta, has raised $1.03 billion at a $3.5 billion pre-money valuation. The company is working on world models, a form of AI that learns from reality itself, not just from language.
This category currently has fewer players than generative AI, but that may soon change. The CEO of AMI Labs, Alexandre LeBrun, predicts that ‘world models’ will become the next major buzzword. He noted that within six months, many companies might label themselves as world model companies to attract funding. LeBrun made this comment with a smile, believing AMI Labs is fundamentally different because its core goal is to build an understanding of the real world.
This technology could have significant applications in fields like healthcare. AMI Labs’ first partner will be Nabla, a digital health startup where LeBrun now serves as chairman. His experience as Nabla’s CEO led him to the same conclusion as LeCun regarding the limitations of large language models, where inaccuracies or hallucinations could have serious, even life-threatening, consequences. However, LeBrun acknowledges that creating a viable alternative based on LeCun’s proposed Joint Embedding Predictive Architecture will take considerable time.
LeBrun describes AMI Labs as a very ambitious project rooted in fundamental research, not a typical applied AI startup that can quickly release a product and generate revenue. He states it could take years for world models to move from theory to practical commercial applications.
Despite this long-term horizon, companies developing world models are attracting substantial investment. Other players like SpAItial and Fei-Fei Li’s World Labs have secured significant funding. AMI Labs now joins this group with a larger round than initially rumored. Reports in December suggested the French AI lab was seeking 500 million euros, but it ultimately raised approximately 890 million euros.
The strong funding round is likely due to its notable team. In addition to Yann LeCun as chairman and Alexandre LeBrun as CEO, the company includes Meta’s VP for Europe Laurent Solly as COO, and high-profile researchers Saining Xie, Pascale Fung, and Michael Rabbat in key scientific roles.
LeBrun stated the high investor interest allowed the startup to be selective, choosing backers aligned with their vision and offering strategic value. The round was co-led by Cathay Innovation, Greycroft, Hiro Capital, HV Capital, and Bezos Expeditions, with participation from several other funds and individual investors like Tim and Rosemary Berners-Lee, Jim Breyer, and Mark Cuban.
This capital provides AMI Labs with meaningful runway to fund its primary costs: computing power and talent. LeBrun plans to prioritize quality over quantity while building teams in four key locations: its Paris headquarters, New York where LeCun teaches, Montreal, and Singapore to recruit talent and be near future clients in Asia.
Although AMI Labs does not plan to generate revenue immediately, it intends to engage with prospective customers early. LeBrun emphasizes that developing world models requires real-world testing and evaluation, not just work in a lab. When ready, the company will work with partners to explore deployments, with Nabla being the first disclosed partner expecting access to early models.
The investor group extends beyond lead funds and angels to include corporate backers like NVIDIA, Samsung, Toyota Ventures, and several French industrial groups and investment firms.
While turning these investments into commercial products may take time, AMI Labs remains committed to open research. Staying true to LeCun’s beliefs, the company plans to publish papers and release a lot of its code as open source. LeBrun, who also worked at Meta’s FAIR lab, believes open research accelerates progress and helps build a community and ecosystem around their work.