By ZHAO Yangge
Kunlun Tech, a Chinese online game developer and distributor, said on Thursday that the company is acquiring shares in US AI tech firm Singularity AI Technology Limited for US$160 million (1.1 billion yuan).
Kunlun Tech will obtain a 25 percent stake in Singularity AI and plans to make a capital injection of US$400 million after the deal is done.
Kunlun’s large language model SkyWork 3.5 was developed in conjunction with Singularity and has been in testing in April. Kunlun claims SkyWork has a vast science, technology and culture knowledge base. It can currently handle intelligent questioning, interactive chatting and text generation, with speed and accuracy.
Kunlun Tech owns the Opera browser and karaoke app StarMaker. A consortium that included search and security business Qihoo 360 and Kunlun Tech took over certain parts of the Norwegian online browser firm’s consumer business for US0 million in 2016. Opera sold its interest in StarMaker to Kunlun for US.5 million in cash last year.
Last year, Kunlun Tech's revenue dropped 2.4 percent to 4.74 billion yuan (US$660 million), with net profit down by a quarter to 1.15 billion yuan.
Singularity AI is yet to turn a profit.
