OpenAI has recently acquired Multi, a startup that focuses on developing a video-first collaboration platform for enterprises.
The deal, described as an acqui-hire, will see most of Multi’s team, consisting of around five members, joining OpenAI. Following the acquisition, Multi will cease operations after July 24, as confirmed by Alexander Embiricos, Multi’s CEO and co-founder.
In a blog post, Embiricos expressed his excitement about Multi joining OpenAI and thanked the users for their support.
Multi, founded by Embiricos and Charley Ho, aimed to create a Zoom-based platform tailored for remote teams, offering features such as collaborative screen sharing for up to 10 participants simultaneously, customizable shortcuts, and automatic deep links for code, designs, and documents.
According to data from Crunchbase, Multi secured $13 million in funding from venture capitalists such as Greylock and First Round Capital before its recent acquisition.
Similar to the Rockset purchase, the Multi acquisition appears to align with OpenAI’s recent focus on making substantial investments in enterprise solutions.
OpenAI recently disclosed that its AI-powered chatbot platform, ChatGPT, had nearly 600,000 users in the corporate tier, with 93% of Fortune 500 companies among them.
In May, OpenAI made a deal with PwC to distribute OpenAI’s tools to other companies. The previous month, the company introduced a program for custom AI model tuning and consulting aimed at businesses.
The company’s sales to enterprises seem to be yielding positive results, as OpenAI’s revenue is expected to exceed $3.4 billion this year, according to The Information.
Following the trend of OpenAI’s other products targeted at businesses, it’s possible that we could eventually see an enhanced ChatGPT with features for videoconferencing and remote collaboration.
This wouldn’t be surprising coming from OpenAI, especially as the time between the organization’s main models increases.
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