Machine learning startup ensemble has raised $3.3 million in seed capital to fulfill the growing importance of knowledge quality in artificial intelligence. Salesforce Ventures led the round, with participation from M13, Motivate and Amplo.
founder Alex Reneau And Zach Albertson are pioneering a novel approach to data representation that goals to enhance the performance of machine learning models without requiring large amounts of additional data or complex model architectures.
Unlocking hidden data relationships with “dark matter” technology.
“We have a brand new technique to essentially approximate hidden relationships in your data or missing information that was originally alleged to be in your data set to enhance your model,” Ensemble CEO Alex Reneau said in an exclusive interview with VentureBeat. “We are in a position to enable customers to maximise the information they work with, even when it is restricted, sparse or highly complex, allowing them to coach effective models with less comprehensive information.”
The company's proprietary “dark matter” technology suits into the machine learning pipeline between feature engineering and model training. It creates enriched data representations that uncover latent patterns and relationships, potentially making previously unsolvable problems solvable.
Addressing the challenges of introducing AI into businesses
This approach comes at a critical time for the adoption of AI in corporations. Despite rapid advances in AI capabilities, many corporations struggle to deploy models in production environments as a consequence of data quality issues.
Caroline Fiegel, an investor at Salesforce Ventures, explained the explanations for her investment: “We could have seen during the last 12 to 24 months that corporations are moving more slowly into AI and manufacturing than we expected,” she told VenutreBeat . “If you take a look at that and really understand why, it's because the information is different. It's by some means inferior. It’s full of non-public data.”
Ensemble's technology could have far-reaching impacts across all industries. The company already works with customers within the biotechnology and promoting technology sectors. Initial results are promising in areas akin to predicting virus-host interactions within the gut microbiome.
From the Impossible to the Possible: Expanding the Horizons of Machine Learning
“We actually care rather more concerning the cases where ML is in a position to do what was previously not possible,” Reneau emphasized. “So it's not nearly doing what a human can do and doing it faster, but about what a human couldn't do.”
The funds might be used to speed up product development, expand the team and advance go-to-market efforts. As the AI landscape continues to rapidly evolve, Ensemble sees its mission as providing foundational technology that may adapt to changing needs.
“As these models proceed to evolve and the information landscape continues to evolve, I believe we're definitely in a greater position on the core research side,” Reneau said, hinting at the corporate's long-term vision.
For Salesforce Ventures, the investment is consistent with its thesis on the critical role of knowledge in AI adoption. “Building trust in AI today really will depend on results,” said Fiegel, “and that’s why we’re excited to know that Alex and Zach share that central North Star with us.”
As organizations grapple with the challenges of implementing AI at scale, Ensemble's approach to data quality could prove to be a game-changer. The company's progress is being closely watched by each the technology industry and the broader business community as a possible solution to one among AI's most persistent obstacles.
