StepFun (1 blogmarks)

While looking at the OpenRouter AI Model Rankings, I noticed a model in the #2 spot that I had never heard of – Step 3.5 Flash (free) from StepFun. At this point I've heard the names of the major and not-so-major players in the AI space, but I'd never heard of StepFun.

I found the linked article covering the Shanghai-based AI company which was founded by Jiang Daxin, an ex-Microsoft employee.

Jiang told Chinese media last March that he chose to start his own business after U.S. firm OpenAI released ChatGPT in November 2022. “I thought, I can do it myself, maybe even better,” he said.

Here is a link to their web-based LLM chatbot if you're interested in giving their model(s) a try -- https://stepfun.ai/chats/new.