Cohere and Aleph Alpha Merge With $600M Backing

AI startups Cohere and Aleph Alpha have announced plans to merge, backed by a $600 million structured financing commitment from Schwarz Group, Germany's largest retailer. The deal is expected to close later this year as part of a Series E round that may attract additional investors. The combined company will focus on customized AI solutions for highly regulated industries, targeting finance, healthcare, and public sector organizations. Schwarz Group's cloud unit, Stackit, will distribute the offering as a hosted service, with Cohere CEO Aidan Gomez citing global expansion and sovereign AI delivery as key merger goals.