In a striking move within the artificial intelligence landscape, Ilya Sutskever, co-founder of OpenAI, has successfully raised a staggering $2 billion for his new startup, Safe Superintelligence (SSI). This recent funding round has notably valued the company at an impressive $32 billion, despite the fact that SSI has yet to launch a tangible product since its inception just a year ago.

Sutskever, who departed from OpenAI last year following a tumultuous internal conflict against CEO Sam Altman, founded SSI in June 2022. He was joined by Daniel Gross, a former leader of Apples AI initiatives, and Daniel Levy, an experienced AI investor and researcher. The trio aims to push the boundaries of artificial intelligence with an ambitious vision for the future of the technology.

The recent influx of capital highlights the persistent enthusiasm among investors for backing AI startups that are spearheaded by renowned researchers or exceptionally skilled engineers. This trend has continued unabated, even as economic challenges loom large in the United States.

Major venture capital firms have played a crucial role in this latest funding effort. Notably, Greenoaks led the investment round, contributing $500 million, while other prominent firms such as Lightspeed Venture Partners and Andreessen Horowitz also participated, according to multiple sources familiar with the deal. Just last September, SSI had raised $1 billion at a valuation of $5 billion, demonstrating the rapid growth and interest surrounding the company.

SSIs ambitious goal is to develop AI models that far exceed the capabilities of current leaders in the field, such as OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google. The company operates from its offices located in Palo Alto, California, and Tel Aviv, Israel, indicating a strategic presence in both the heart of Silicon Valley and a burgeoning tech hub in the Middle East.

While SSI has remained somewhat reticent about the specific strategies it plans to employ to outpace its better-financed competitors, Sutskever mentioned in a Financial Times interview last year that he and his team had identified a new mountain to climb thats a bit different from what I was working on previously. This cryptic comment has fueled speculation about the innovative approaches SSI might be exploring.

Insiders familiar with the company have indicated that SSI is actively engaged in developing unique methodologies for both creating and scaling AI models. Currently, many large language models have the capability to synthesize and process vast amounts of data, but they still fall short of fully replicating human intelligence. Sources close to SSI have revealed that the company is particularly focused on advancing this crucial aspect of AI development.

Sutskevers journey into the AI realm began with his co-founding of OpenAI, wherein he held the position of chief scientist during the launch of groundbreaking AI models and products, including the widely recognized chatbot ChatGPT. This innovation sparked a significant investment boom in the artificial intelligence sector.

After leaving OpenAI in May, Sutskever's team, which had been dedicated to aligning AI systems to ensure they act in humanity's best interests, was disbanded. In a parallel development, Mira Murati, a former colleague and ex-CTO at OpenAI, has also launched her own AI startup, Thinking Machines Lab, in February. This organization aims to enhance the understanding, customization, and general capabilities of AI systems and is reportedly in the process of raising a funding round of similar magnitude.

Despite the significant developments and ambitious goals of Safe Superintelligence, the company has declined to comment further on its plans or operations at this time.