OpenAI Looks To Boost Data Retrieval Capabilities Of Its GenAI Technology With Rockset Acquisition

OpenAI has acquired Rockset, developer of a high-powered data search and analytics database that will become part of the data retrieval infrastructure underlying its generative AI software products.

Generative AI pioneer OpenAI has acquired search and analytical database developer Rockset and will leverage the technology to help users of OpenAI’s software “better leverage their own data” for AI tasks.

The Rockset technology will be used to “power the retrieval infrastructure backing OpenAI’s product suite,” Rockset CEO Venkat Venkataramani (pictured) said in a blog post. “Advanced retrieval infrastructure like Rockset will make AI apps more powerful and useful.”

Both Rockset, headquartered in San Mateo, Calif., and San Francisco-based OpenAI said members of Rockset’s team will join the AI startup, but no specifics were provided.

The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. OpvenAI used its shares to buy the company in a stock deal that valued Rockset at a few hundred million dollars, according to a Reuters story, citing “sources familiar with the matter.”

Rockset, part of the CRN Big Data 100, was founded in 2016 by former Meta engineers. In August 2023 the company raised $44 million in a Series B extension funding round, with investors that included Sequoia and Greylock, bringing its total financing to $105 million.

The Rockset data search and analytics database, developed for the cloud, provides real-time streaming data ingest, indexing and querying capabilities with time series, geospatial and vector data functionality. In November Rockset boosted its software’s AI capabilities by expanding its vector search capabilities with Approximate Nearest Neighbor (ANN) search and by supporting the LangChain and LlamaIndex development frameworks.

OpenAI’s ChatGPT and other software have exploded in popularity over the last two years and triggered a wave of AI development across the IT industry. But businesses have faced the challenge of getting their organization’s own data into generative AI systems, limiting their effectiveness for business tasks.

OpenAI will use the Rockset technology, including its real-time data processing and vector search capabilities, to boost the data retrieval infrastructure that backs OpenAI’s product suite, Venkataramani said in his blog post. That, in turn, will improve the usefulness and accuracy of the GenAI software’s output.

“Rapid advancements in LLMs are enabling a Cambrian explosion and numerous innovations across every industry, driving a preponderance of AI applications,” the Rockset CEO said. “While the nature of these applications has changed, the underlying infrastructure challenges have not. Advanced retrieval infrastructure like Rockset will make AI apps more powerful and useful. With this acquisition, what we’ve developed over the years will help make AI accessible to all in a safe and beneficial way.”

“Rockset’s infrastructure empowers companies to transform their data into actionable intelligence. We’re excited to bring these benefits to our customers by integrating Rockset’s foundation into OpenAI products,” said OpenAI chief operating officer Brad Lightcap, in a blogpost on the OpenAI site.

Venkataramani said in his blog that existing Rockset customers will experience no immediate change. “We will gradually transition current customers off Rockset and are committed to ensuring a smooth process,” he said.