French telecommunications giant Orange has entered into a new agreement with OpenAI, granting it direct access to OpenAI's artificial intelligence (AI) models. This partnership was officially announced in a press release issued by Orange on November 26.
This collaboration not only offers Orange a direct pathway for data processing and hosting within European data centers but also enables the company to access and utilize OpenAI's latest AI models ahead of others. Orange stated that the agreement's signing will significantly enhance its existing solutions and provide robust support for the development of more innovative use cases.
Orange specifically highlighted its plans to explore AI-driven customer voice interaction, aiming to enhance the customer service experience through AI technology. The company emphasized its commitment to a "responsible AI" philosophy, carefully selecting the most appropriate and streamlined solutions for each AI use case. This approach ensures effectiveness while minimizing environmental impact and reducing the costs associated with deploying numerous valuable AI solutions on Orange's platform. For the latest large language models, Orange will adopt them only when necessary, opting for simpler and more cost-effective alternatives otherwise.
Corporate investments in generative AI are rapidly increasing. According to a report released by venture capital firm Menlo Ventures on November 20, spending on generative AI by businesses has surged sixfold over the past year, reaching $13.8 billion. Additionally, 72% of enterprise IT decision-makers anticipate broader adoption of generative AI within their organizations in the near future. Joff Redfern, a partner at Menlo Ventures, noted that organizations are moving beyond pilot phases to integrate AI into their core business strategies.
In addition to its partnership with OpenAI, Orange announced in its press release that it will collaborate with partners such as Meta to fine-tune large language models (LLMs) for understanding African local languages. The project will initially focus on Wolof and Pular, languages spoken by 16 million and 6 million people in Africa, respectively. Orange plans to leverage these AI models to deliver customer support and sales communications, as well as to apply them across various service sectors including public health and education.
Orange stated that its long-term goal is to collaborate with numerous AI technology providers to ensure future AI models can recognize and understand both written and spoken forms of all languages covered in the 18 African countries where Orange operates. This vision reflects Orange's ongoing pursuit of technological innovation and underscores its strong commitment to the African market.
The partnership with OpenAI undoubtedly injects new momentum into Orange's exploration and development in the AI sector. As AI technologies continue to advance and expand into new application areas, Orange is poised to secure a more advantageous position in future market competitions.
