Combient Foundry announces a large-scale initiative with Silo AI to connect generative AI startups with corporates

Combient Foundry, known for connecting startups with large corporations through their unique venture client approach, is announcing a large-scale generative AI program to find new AI applications for large industrial companies. The program, jointly organized with one of Europe’s largest private AI labs, Silo AI, will feature global, industry-leading players Atlas Copco, Autoliv, Epiroc, Husqvarna Group, KONE, Munters, Scania, SKF, and Stora Enso, marking the first time an initiative of this level and calibre has been launched in Europe.

Three-quarters of the world’s $100tn in gross domestic product is made up of heavy industries — such as manufacturing, material production and extraction, and logistics. At the same time, generative AI is still a relatively untapped opportunity for these areas.

“Right now, traditional industries have an unprecedented opportunity to take up new generative AI solutions. We are proud to launch a hands-on initiative to work on solutions for this space, and connect top startups building generative AI applications with the largest Nordic industrial companies”, explains Lauri Lehtovuori, the CEO and Founder of Combient Foundry. “Having Silo AI join this initiative is an honour. It is one of the ways we can see the immediate benefits of their acquisition of Combient Mix this past summer. Both startups and corporates taking part in this program have a unique opportunity to drive change and growth both in multiple industries and for their own businesses – faster than ever before.”

Silo AI supporting as initiative's main AI partner

The initiative's main AI partner, Silo AI, has a proven track record of building value-adding AI solutions for traditional industry clients and will contribute to the initiative through their world-class AI expertise and SiloGen’s development platform for accurate, trustworthy and robust downstream applications. The leading AI company will help the corporations cut through the generative AI hype and support in qualifying solutions with real value-creating potential throughout the initiative, while also helping to map the generative AI use cases with the highest relevance for the participating companies.

“The demand for generative AI applications in traditional industries is indisputable. We are already building bespoke solutions for various client use cases, while our product arm SiloGen has been developing tools and technology within generative AI, as well as fine-tuned LLMs for multiple clients since its launch in April this year. At SiloGen, we are also working with multiple companies in the Combient network as part of our LLM Sandbox program to identify LLM use cases within these companies,” says Peter Sarlin, CEO and Co-founder of Silo AI. “Value creation with AI will happen in downstream applications, which is why initiatives such as these are of utmost importance. We are honored to be advancing industrial AI together with Combient Foundry and continuing to serve the Combient network of associated companies.”

Through the initiative, Combient Foundry and Silo AI will accelerate the adoption of generative AI solutions benefiting entire sectors, and especially across the participating companies, while giving startups the opportunity to validate their offering.

“The key to successful AI-based applications lies in starting with a clear focus on addressing specific business challenges, rather than adopting AI technology and then searching for a problem to solve. For AI to have a significant impact on industrial operations, it should only be utilised when it is the most effective solution for a particular pain point. This problem-solving approach, which we seek in this program specifically, is crucial for nurturing the true use of generative AI in industrial applications”, explains Lehtovuori.

The nine participating companies are looking for solutions in areas such as manufacturing, R&D, sales and marketing, software development, customer experience, and internal operations. These topics have a total of 44 business opportunities, focusing on different strategically important challenges.

The Foundry & Silo AI team will review each submission, reaching out to the startups with the most promising solutions and connecting the startups with the right corporations. Once the corporate teams have made their selections by the end of the year, the new startup-corporate partners will kick off the first pilot projects, accelerating the use of generative AI in industrial challenges.

Generative AI summit

The initiative culminates on November 28th and 29th at the Generative AI Summit hosted by Combient Foundry, when the most promising companies are invited to Stockholm, Sweden, to meet their potential partner corporations.

The event will feature an esteemed lineup of global experts in generative AI, including a keynote from Silo AI Co-Founder and Chair Tero Ojanperä.

To secure your spot at this exclusive event, sign up for the waitlist here. Space is limited, and seats will be allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

For more information on the generative AI initiative, visit Combient Foundry's Generative AI page.