What is vLLM and why is it significant?

vLLM is an open-source project designed to make AI models run faster and more affordably during the inference stage of deployment.

Who invested in Inferact, the startup behind vLLM?

The $150 million seed funding round for Inferact was co-led by Andreessen Horowitz and Lightspeed Venture Partners.

What is the valuation of Inferact after its seed funding?

Inferact, the startup formed from the vLLM project, has achieved a valuation of $800 million following its $150 million seed funding.

Home / Technology / Open-Source AI Tool vLLM Secures $150M Seed Funding

Open-Source AI Tool vLLM Secures $150M Seed Funding

23 Jan

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Summary

vLLM's creators launched Inferact, raising $150 million seed funding.
The startup Inferact achieved an $800 million valuation post-funding.
This funding reflects investor interest in inference acceleration technologies.

Open-Source AI Tool vLLM Secures $150M Seed Funding

The creators behind the open-source AI tool vLLM have officially transitioned the project into a venture-backed startup named Inferact. This new entity has successfully raised $150 million in seed funding, achieving a valuation of $800 million. The funding round saw participation from prominent investors, with Andreessen Horowitz and Lightspeed Venture Partners co-leading the investment.

This development follows the recent commercialization of a similar project, SGLang, highlighting a significant trend in the AI sector. As the industry shifts focus from AI model training to deployment in real-world applications—a process known as inference—technologies like vLLM that enhance speed and affordability are garnering substantial investor attention.

Both vLLM and SGLang originated from UC Berkeley's lab, incubated in 2023. Inferact CEO Simon Mo, one of vLLM's original creators, noted that major clients, including Amazon's cloud service and a prominent shopping application, are already utilizing vLLM.