OpenAI’s Japanese Rival Sakana in Talks to Raise Capital at $2.5 Billion Valuation

Sakana AI, a Tokyo-based developer of artificial intelligence, is in talks with U.S. and Japanese investors to raise $100 million at a valuation of $2.5 billion, up 66% from a financing a year ago, according to two people involved in the discussions.

The funding talks come months after CEO David Ha said publicly that the company would operate profitably within a year. Sakana is developing AI with a different type of technology than OpenAI, Anthropic and Google use. This year the startup has announced deals to develop AI for some of Japan’s largest financial institutions.