Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced an expansion of its free credits program for startups, now covering the costs associated with using major AI models. In an interview with Reuters, the company revealed this initiative as part of its efforts to bolster the market share of its AI platform, Bedrock.
In a bid to attract startup customers, Amazon’s cloud credits now extend to cover the use of models from other providers, including Anthropic, Meta, Mistral AI, and Cohere.
Howard Wright, vice president and global head of startups at AWS, emphasized the significance of this move, stating, “This is another gift that we’re making back to the startup ecosystem, in exchange for what we hope is startups continue to choose AWS as their first stop.”
The expansion follows Amazon’s recent $4 billion investment in Anthropic in convertible notes. As part of this investment, Anthropic will utilize AWS as its primary cloud provider, leveraging Trainium and Inferentia chips to build and train its models.
Wright highlighted the contribution of Amazon’s free credits to the revenue of Anthropic, positioning it as one of the most popular models on Bedrock. He emphasized AWS’s commitment to offering a wide range of choices and robust security measures to startups.
Amazon disclosed that it has provided over $6 billion in credits to startups over the past decade. In collaboration with Y Combinator, AWS is currently offering $500,000 in credits for the latest cohort launched in January, which can be utilized for AI models and Amazon’s chips. Given the potential costs associated with AI usage, especially based on usage, such credits are invaluable for startups.
However, Amazon is not the only major cloud provider offering free credits to attract AI startups. Microsoft Azure offers credits applicable to OpenAI’s models, while Google Cloud credits can be utilized for over 130 models on Vertex AI.
The investments made by big tech companies in AI startups have come under scrutiny from regulators. The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has initiated an inquiry into Microsoft’s backing of OpenAI, as well as Google and Amazon’s investment in Anthropic, reflecting growing concerns surrounding competition and market dynamics in the AI sector.
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