Canadian AI startup Cohere is seeking up to $5.0bn in a financing round that values the company at $20.5bn, roughly double its valuation a year ago. Cohere said it has completed a first close that the CFO said covers most of the amount. Investors include the Canadian government, which has committed up to $1.14bn, and NVIDIA; the previously disclosed $600m pledge from Schwarz Group is included. Prime Minister Carney said Cohere will keep its headquarters in Canada and expects to invest about $1.2

Canadian AI startup Cohere is seeking up to $5.0bn in a financing round that values the company at $20.5bn, roughly double its valuation a year ago. Cohere said it has completed a first close that the CFO said covers most of the amount. Investors include the Canadian government, which has committed up to $1.14bn, and NVIDIA; the previously disclosed $600m pledge from Schwarz Group is included. Prime Minister Carney said Cohere will keep its headquarters in Canada and expects to invest about $1.2bn in new compute infrastructure by 2030. The $20.5bn valuation excludes proceeds from the round; if completed, the raise would be the largest private financing in Canadian history.