Alibaba cloud services unit extends Meta AI model support in China

Alibaba Group Holding’s cloud computing services unit has extended support in China for the next-generation large language model (LLM)—the technology used to train chatbots like ChatGPT—that was launched last week by Meta Platforms as a free artificial intelligence (AI) resource for research and commercial use, reports the South China Morning Post.

Alibaba Cloud, the Chinese e-commerce giant’s digital technology and intelligence backbone, has added Meta’s Llama 2 LLM to ModelScope, its open-source “model-as-a-service” platform that makes available more than 700 AI models—covering various fields from computer vision to natural language processing and audio—to local developers.

The addition of Llama 2 to its ModelScope platform is in line with Alibaba Cloud’s goal to offer LLM start-ups “comprehensive services including model training, inferencing and deployment,” the Hangzhou-based company said on Tuesday in a post published on its official WeChat account. In addition, the firm said it will provide funding and other forms of support to these businesses.