OpenAI hires staff of Shopify-backed AI startup Crossing Minds

OpenAI has hired the team behind venture-backed artificial intelligence startup Crossing Minds Inc.

Crossing Minds confirmed the deal, first reported by TechCrunch today, in an update on its website without disclosing the financial terms. The company previously raised more than $13 million in funding from Shopify Inc., Index Ventures and other backers.

Crossing Minds was launched in 2016 by a team that included prominent AI researcher Sebastian Thrun. He earlier co-founded online education platform Udacity Inc. and Alphabet Inc.’s X product research lab. Crossing Minds’ two other co-founders, Emile Contal and Alexandre Robicquet, are also AI researchers.

According to TechCrunch, Robicquet has joined OpenAI in a research role. His work will encompass AI agents and post-training, a phase of the AI development process that focuses on enhancing model output quality. Post-training is an important element of the workflow through which reasoning models are developed.

It’s unclear how many of Crossing Minds’ other team members are joining OpenAI. There’s also no word on whether the ChatGPT developer has acquired the company’s technology, or whether it plans to make the technology available to users.

Before the deal, Crossing Minds offered an AI-powered product recommendation system for online retailers. It automatically generated shopping suggestions based on data such as a customer’s past purchases. According to Crossing Minds, the neural networks that power the software were developed using a custom version of gradient descent, a popular AI training method.

The company also offered two tools designed to ease the task of building AI applications. 

The first tool was built to generate embeddings, the data structures in which AI neural networks keep information. The technical specifications of those data structures vary based on the information they contain.

An embedding that holds a complex code snippet, for example, is likely to require more RAM than one that stores a product description. Crossing Minds says that its tool generates embeddings optimized for data such as consumer shopping preferences.

The company’s second developer tool is called RAGSys. It’s designed to ease the task of equipping AI applications with RAG, or retrieval-augmented generation, features. The software works with off-the-shelf large language models from multiple AI providers, including OpenAI.

The acquisition is at least the third the ChatGPT developer has made since the start of the year. Last month, it bought Jony ive’s io Products Inc. in an all-stock deal worth $6.5 billion. A few weeks earlier, it reportedly spent about $3 billion to acquire Windsurf Inc., a startup with a popular AI coding tool.

Image: Unsplash

Enjoy the perfect blend of retro charm and modern convenience with the Udreamer Vinyl Record Player. With 9,041 ratings, a 4.3/5-star average, and 400+ units sold in the past month, this player is a fan favorite, available now for just $39.99.

The record player features built-in stereo speakers that deliver retro-style sound while also offering modern functionality. Pair it with your phone via Bluetooth to wirelessly listen to your favorite tracks. Udreamer also provides 24-hour one-on-one service for customer support, ensuring your satisfaction.

Don’t miss out—get yours today for only $39.99 at Amazon!

Help Power Techcratic’s Future – Scan To Support

If Techcratic’s content and insights have helped you, consider giving back by supporting the platform with crypto. Every contribution makes a difference, whether it’s for high-quality content, server maintenance, or future updates. Techcratic is constantly evolving, and your support helps drive that progress.

As a solo operator who wears all the hats, creating content, managing the tech, and running the site, your support allows me to stay focused on delivering valuable resources. Your support keeps everything running smoothly and enables me to continue creating the content you love. I’m deeply grateful for your support, it truly means the world to me! Thank you!