PIN AI, an artificial intelligence infrastructure company, has secured $10 million in pre-seed funding and joined the Fall 2024 cohort of the a16z Crypto Startup Accelerator (a16z CSX).
According to a press release shared with Cointelegraph, the startup is focused on developing the first open-source Personal Intelligence Network (PIN).
The open-source solution, emerging from research collaborations at Ethereum Core, Stanford, and MIT, directly competes with Apple’s newly launched Apple Intelligence AI solution.
In a written Q&A with Cointelegraph, Ben Wu, a co-founder of PIN AI, explained that the Sept. 9 announcement coincides with Apple’s same-day announcement to “maximize the impact of the communication.”
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Apple decentralized alternative
According to the press release, PIN AI is a privacy-focused, open-source alternative to Apple Intelligence, exclusive to specific iPhone models.
The decentralized alternative is designed to run on lower-spec smartphones and a wider range of devices, allowing it to be accessible to a broader audience.
Wu explained that “internet giants like Apple, Google, Facebook, and Amazon have built trillion-dollar empires based on user data.”
“...but users don’t own any of it. Our AI x crypto solution allows users to earn token incentives based on the data they connect and the activities they perform [...] sharing ownership of the entire platform with the users.”
Related: Elon Musk denies Tesla will pay xAI for AI technology partnership
Open-source implications
The PIN AI platform will enable developers to create AI agents that operate on users’ devices, utilizing user personal data in a decentralized and privacy-preserving manner.
According to the press release, the platform will use blockchain tech and advanced AI models to allow users to manage their data securely across multiple applications.
Davide Crapis, a co-founder of PIN AI, explained that the open-source PIN “will protect user freedom from big internet giants” and take back over $100 billion in profit from user data.
“Our platform empowers users to monetize and control their own data, offering them the benefits that major tech giants like Apple previously dominated.”
Related: OpenAI business users top 1M, targets premium ChatGPT subscriptions
International AI treaty signed
On Sept. 5, the world moved closer to international unification of its goals and values regarding AI after a meeting of Council of Europe ministers of justice.
The United States, the European Union and the United Kingdom were set to sign the Framework Convention on AI, a treaty focused on human rights and democratic values.
The treaty aims to regulate public and private-sector AI models and would be the world’s first international treaty on AI that is legally binding on its signatories.
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