Meta’s just rolled out some exciting updates in the world of artificial intelligence with their latest Llama 4 models. These advancements mark a big step forward in AI technology. Unveiled on April 4, the Llama 4 series is being hailed as some of the most advanced large language models (LLMs) out there. Among the new introductions are the Llama 4 Scout and Llama 4 Maverick. Meta is calling them the “first open-weight natively multimodal models,” which means they can handle a variety of media types, not just text.
Another impressive addition is the Llama 4 Behemoth, which Meta describes as one of the smartest LLMs they’ve developed so far. It’s designed to mentor other models, making it a powerhouse in Meta’s lineup. Over the past couple of years, Meta has been seriously ramping up its AI investments. CEO Mark Zuckerberg has shared plans to invest up to $65 billion by 2025 to enhance the company’s AI capabilities. That’s a huge commitment to expanding beyond social media.
Meta’s also exploring new ways to broaden its AI reach. They’re considering premium subscription trials for their AI assistant, Meta AI, to help with tasks like booking reservations or producing videos. It’s all about making AI more accessible and useful in everyday tasks.
Meanwhile, OpenAI has announced plans to release an open-source version of its LLM. It’s been a while since they’ve done this, and they’re looking for feedback from developers, researchers, and the public to make the model even more useful. This open-source model should be available in the coming months.
OpenAI’s decision comes after a significant shift to proprietary models, following a $1 billion investment from Microsoft. This partnership is all about pushing the boundaries of AI model development. Microsoft has put over $13 billion into OpenAI, and their models are exclusively available through Microsoft’s Azure cloud services.
Open-source models are gaining popularity, with Meta’s Llama and other developers like Mistral and DeepSeek making waves. Meta’s Llama, in particular, has hit some impressive milestones. CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently shared on Threads that Llama has been downloaded a billion times since its launch in 2023. That’s quite a feat!
