Washington: Writer Inc., a startup that helps businesses write and summarize a wide range of content, has raised $100 million in a deal that values the company at more than $500 million.
Led by Chief Executive Officer May Habib, Writer is the latest artificial intelligence upstart to use large language models in a corporate setting. LLMs are trained on large swaths of online text so they can generate writing that sounds as if it were produced by a human.
The startup lets companies to use AI for functions like producing product descriptions, job listings and social media posts, along with analysing data and automating tasks.
Its roster of customers include high-profile companies like L'OrA(c)al SA, Spotify Technology SA and Uber Technologies Inc. L'OrA(c)al, for example, uses Writer's software to help create digital marketing campaigns.
"So much of every technology evolution and revolution at work has made us work harder and longer hours, from email to social media to always-on communication platforms like Slack," Habib said. "I think generative AI is actually able to reduce much more of the cognitive manual labor that opens up a much more creative day."
Iconiq Growth led the funding round, with participation from investors including WndrCo, Balderton Capital and Insight Partners. Accenture Plc and Vanguard Group Inc., both Writer customers, also invested, the company said.
Writer plans to use the cash infusion in part to invest in its AI models in order to make them more capable. With the latest financing, the company has raised a total of $126 million.
With Iconiq's investment, General Partner Doug Pepper became the seventh member of Writer's board. Pepper said that there's currently a lot of "hype" in the enterprise AI market, but also that the startup is already leading to productivity gains for customers.
