Highlights:

  • Participating startups will receive cloud services valued up to USD 300,000 for free from the cloud giant.
  • The 10-week course will come to an end with a Demo Day gathering in San Francisco on July 26 and 27.

Amazon Web Services Inc. introduced an accelerator initiative to help generative artificial intelligence startups.

In the opening of applications for the AWS Generative AI Accelerator initiative, it was announced that the application deadline is April 17. The program targets startups with a minimum viable product, are experiencing at least some customer success, and intend to expand their business operations.

AWS will disclose the winning applicants at a function planned for May 25. The training will begin on the same day for the startups that were chosen to take part. The AWS Generative AI Accelerator is scheduled to operate for ten weeks, starting with the opening event on May 25 and ending on July 27.

Participating startups will receive free cloud services valued at up to USD 300,000 from the cloud giant. Participants will also get commercial and technical guidance from the Amazon.com Inc. division. It will aid startups in undertaking duties like product development.

Howard Wright, Vice President and Global Head of AWS Startups said, “With a program tailored to meet the needs of generative AI startups, the AWS Generative AI Accelerator will provide access to impactful AI models and tools, customized go-to-market strategies, machine learning stack optimization and more.”

The 10-week program will end with a Demo Day gathering in San Francisco on July 26 and 27. The attending startups will showcase their goods to the public, investors, and media at the event. Participants in the program will also have access to additional business gatherings in the generative AI community.

The accelerator augments the current AWS Activate startup program. The latter, available to entrepreneurs in the AI sector and other fields, provides access to AWS credits worth up to USD 100,000. Additionally, participants receive savings on software-as-a-service and access to cloud configuration templates.

Microsoft Corp. and Google LLC, AWS’ leading competitors in the cloud space, both operate startup accelerator programs. Both, like the Amazon division, provide participating businesses with access to complimentary cloud services on their respective platforms as well as other advantages.

Running a startup program allows cloud suppliers to collaborate with businesses that may eventually become essential clients. In the quick-moving tech sector, a small startup can develop into a sizable company with a sizable cloud budget. This is especially true in emerging markets that attract sizable amounts of venture money.

Startups collected an estimated USD 2.6 billion from investors last year in the generative AI market, which is the focus of AWS’ new accelerator program. This increased from USD 271 million in 2020 to USD 1.54 billion in 2021. As of late January, there are reportedly more than 250 generative Intelligence startups in the market.