Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced a $230 million commitment to support generative AI startups. This initiative expands AWS’s global Generative AI Accelerator program, aiming to assist 80 founders and innovators, including 20 from the Asia-Pacific and Japan (APJ) region. The program is designed to help startups accelerate their growth with tailored technical and business programming.
Applications for the AWS Generative AI Accelerator are open until July 19, with the program running for 10 weeks starting October 1.
Benefits for Participants
Selected generative AI startups will receive support in several areas:
- Skill Development: Sessions on machine learning, stack optimization, and go-to-market strategies.
- AWS Credits: Up to $1 million in AWS credits for compute, storage, databases, and AWS’s ML accelerators, AWS Trainium and AWS Inferentia2.
- Mentorship and Networking: Access to business and technical mentors, as well as opportunities to network with industry experts.
AWS Generative AI Spotlight Program
AWS has also launched the AWS Generative AI Spotlight program in the APJ region. This four-week accelerator program targets pre-seed and seed-stage startups building generative AI applications. It aims to help startups enhance their understanding and use of AWS’s generative AI tools and services.
Participants will gain access to business and technical expertise from industry leaders, investors, and a community of innovators. The program will select up to 120 startups across the APJ region, including 40 from India. Applications are open from June 13 to June 30, with selected startups announced in July.
Partnering with Accel
In India, AWS is partnering with venture capital firm Accel for the AWS Generative AI Spotlight program. Last year, AWS and Accel launched ML Elevate 2023, a six-week accelerator program that supported 35 generative AI startups in India.
Leadership Comments
Matt Taylor, Head of Startups Solutions Architecture, APJ at AWS, stated, “For 18 years, AWS has helped more startups build, launch, and scale than any other cloud provider – it’s no coincidence that 96% of all AI/ML unicorns run on AWS. These two complementary accelerator programs will help startups at various stages of growth in the APJ region to drive innovations on our generative AI stack.”
Amitabh Nagpal, Head of Startup Ecosystem, AWS India, added, “Generative AI offers businesses immense potential to accelerate innovation, revolutionize industries, and drive economic growth. Tailored to the lifecycle of early-stage generative AI startups, the two distinct, complementary programs – AWS global generative AI accelerator, and APJ Generative AI Spotlight, are designed to offer selected startups access to various resources such as AWS credits, tools, and expertise, to accelerate their journey. We invite eligible startups in India to apply for the programs, and look forward to empowering startups that are driving generative AI-led transformation in the country.”
This initiative underscores AWS’s commitment to fostering innovation and supporting the growth of generative AI startups globally.
