In a strategic move, Indian AI startup Sarvam unveiled the Indus chat app for web and mobile users, entering a competitive global market dominated by entities such as OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google. The launch is significant amidst India's growing focus on generative AI adoption, with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reporting over 100 million weekly active users of ChatGPT in India, while Anthropic citing India accounting for 5.8% of total Claude usage, second only to the U.S.
The Indus app serves as an interface for Sarvam's newly announced 105B model, a large language model consisting of 105 billion parameters. The launch follows Sarvam's unveiling of its 105B and 30B models at the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi earlier this week. At the event, the startup detailed enterprise initiatives, hardware plans, and partnerships with companies including HMD for AI integration on Nokia feature phones and Bosch for AI-enabled automotive applications.
Currently available in beta on iOS, Android, and the web, the Indus app enables users to input queries via text or speech and receive responses in both text and audio formats. Users can sign up using their phone number, Google or Microsoft account, or Apple ID, although the service currently seems restricted to India.
However, the Indus app comes with some limitations. Users cannot delete their chat history without deleting their account, and there is no option to turn off the reasoning feature, which can occasionally delay response times. Sarvam has cautioned that access may be subject to restriction as it progressively increases its compute capacity, stating, "We’re gradually rolling out Indus on a limited compute capacity, so you may find yourself on a waitlist initially. We will expand access over time." This statement was made by Pratyush, one of the co-founders of Sarvam.
India-based startup Sarvam, founded in 2023, has revealed plans to develop large language models tailored for the local market, according to Kumar's report. The company, which has raised $41 million from investors such as Lightspeed Venture Partners, Peak XV Partners, and Khosla Ventures, is currently seeking user feedback.
The tech company's aim is to create domestic alternatives to global artificial intelligence platforms, aligning with India's ambition for greater control over its AI infrastructure. This push comes as a growing number of Indian startups are pursuing similar goals.
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