Mozilla is assembling a network of AI startups and developers to counter the dominance of industry leaders OpenAI and Anthropic. The nonprofit organization, known for its Firefox browser, plans to deploy its $1.4 billion in reserves to support companies focused on transparent and trustworthy AI development.
Ashley Capoot reports for CNBC that Mozilla President Mark Surman describes the initiative as “a rebel alliance of sorts,” echoing the organization’s history of challenging tech giants like Microsoft and Google.
Mozilla faces significant financial hurdles. Its 2022 venture fund started with just $35 million, while OpenAI has raised over $60 billion and Anthropic more than $30 billion. Mozilla Ventures has invested in over 55 companies to date, including AI governance startup Trail and open-source platform Oumi.
Surman criticizes OpenAI’s transformation from a nonprofit AI lab promising to benefit humanity into a $500 billion commercial entity. He warns that major tech companies pursuing “winner-takes-all” strategies will “eat you if you’re not careful.”
Some portfolio company founders express mixed feelings about the rebel alliance framing. Tony Salomone of Transformer Lab acknowledges using such language to generate excitement, while Anna Spitznagel of Trail prefers focusing on enabling AI deployment rather than hindering it.
By 2028, Mozilla aims to fund a mainstream open-source AI ecosystem for developers while targeting 20% annual growth in nonsearch revenue. Surman remains confident despite skepticism about whether smaller players can capture market share from established giants.
