Tech giant Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) is releasing its open-source artificial intelligence (AI) model, Llama 2, free of charge to the world. Llama 2, a form of large language model (LLM) software, is believed to be a better and improved version of Llama, having been trained with over 40% more data than its previous version. Moreover, the output quality of Llama 2 is poised to be superior to the earlier Llama version since it has been trained with over 1 million human annotations, Meta said. META shares rose 1.1% on the news in midday trading on July 18.
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Meta and Microsoft Unleash Llama 2
Meta has chosen Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) as the “preferred partner” for the commercial release of Llama 2. MSFT will distribute the model through its Azure Cloud service to businesses, with the capability of running on its Windows operating system. Additionally, Llama 2 will also be available as a direct download on Amazon Web Services (AWS) (NASDAQ:AMZN), Hugging Face, and other distributors, Meta said in a blog post.
Meta’s commercial use of Llama 2 is in direct competition with OpenAI’s GPT-4 model, which is also backed by Microsoft. Both GPT-4, a higher version of the original ChatGPT, and Alphabet’s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Baird are closed-source AI models.
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg commented on enabling the commercial usage of the open-source approach in response to concerns about the misuse of such generative AI software. He said, “Open-source drives innovation because it enables many more developers to build with new technology… It also improves safety and security because when software is open, more people can scrutinize it to identify and fix potential issues.” Further, Meta has put an “acceptable use” policy in place that prohibits the commercial use of the model for harmful use cases such as violence, terrorism, child abuse, et al.
Meta Brings Llama 2 to Smartphones
In addition to the agreement with Microsoft, Meta Platforms announced yesterday that it is partnering with chip maker Qualcomm (NASDAQ:QCOM). The deal will bring Meta’s Llama 2 model to Qualcomm’s chips that are used in smartphones and personal computers beginning in 2024. Such integration will enable easy and cheaper functionality for the Llama 2 models and help in building improved versions of voice assistants and other virtual assistance apps.
Until now, models like the Llama 2 have been available only on the cloud or in large data centers because of the heavy use of computational power to run them. Having the models run “on the edge” of a PC or smartphone will be a game changer for both Meta and Qualcomm.
Qualcomm believes that implementing AI on devices will boost privacy and security measures and make the development of software cheaper for developers. “To effectively scale generative AI into the mainstream, AI will need to run on both the cloud and devices at the edge, such as smartphones, laptops, vehicles, and IoT devices,” QCOM stated.
Is META a Strong Buy?
Yes, META stock has a Strong Buy consensus rating on TipRanks. This is based on 36 Buys and three Hold ratings. Yesterday, KeyBanc analyst Justin Patterson maintained a Buy rating on META with a price target of $335 (7.4% upside). The analyst believes that internet stocks are poised for incremental growth going forward as he sees some signs of ad spend recovery for the sector.
The average Meta Platforms price target of $316.95 implies 1.6% upside potential from current levels. Meanwhile, META has gained an impressive 150.2% so far this year.
