Stability AI Denies Reaching Out to Jasper or Cohere for Acquisition

Stability AI chief Emad Mostaque has clarified that the company did not approach Jasper or Cohere to sell its business. This clarification follows recent reports suggesting that Stability AI had reached out to the aforementioned companies

Mostaque said, “We have never reached out to anyone to be acquired. Jasper is an awesome partner, and Cohere is doing great work”. 

Speculation about Stability AI pursuing acquisition has surfaced due to the company's existing business challenges. According to Mostaque, the company's current state is described as 'relatively stable,' if not 'unstable’.

To keep Stability AI’s business afloat, Mostaque has recently expressed his intentions to introduce Stability AI Memberships. He believes that in today’s market any AI startup needs to have a business model; otherwise, survival in the market won’t be easy. 

“We are doing ok as a business and ramping up nicely” he posted on X. 

The company generated $1.2 million in revenue in August and was projected to reach $3 million this month from software and services, according to a post by Mostaque on X on Monday, which he later deleted.

To determine the ideal pricing for his new core Stable models, he ran a poll on X. Ironically, most users voted for $1, indicating that they want the models to be available for free. 

Mostaque mentioned that there has been tension in the organisation lately regarding what to release versus withhold, how to compete on API and other products, including consumer-focused ones. 

"We want to release good models, and the line between open-source and releasing in the open, plus how to build a sustainable business, has been something we have spent a lot of time thinking about," he added. 

Mostaque said that for commercial usage you will compulsorily need to have a Stability AI Membership. “For example, we’re considering, for an indie developer, this fee to be $100 a month, but only if you make above a certain amount of revenue, similar to game engines," he said.