Amazon. com, Inc. 's (NASDAQ: AMZN) Amazon Web Service (AWS) is expanding its program for startups by offering free credits. In addition to covering the use of its own models, AWS will now allow the credits to be used for models from other providers such as Anthropic, Meta, Mistral AI, and Cohere, according to a report by Reuters. The move is aimed at increasing the market share of AWS's AI platform, Bedrock. Howard Wright, vice president and global head of startups at AWS, sees this as a way of supporting the startup ecosystem and hopes that startups will continue choosing AWS as their preferred provider. This announcement follows Amazon's significant investment in Anthropic, which brings the total investment to $4 billion. Over the past decade, Amazon has provided over $6 billion in credits to startups.

In partnership with Y Combinator, Amazon is also offering $500, 000 in credits for the latest cohort launched in January, which can be used for AI models and Amazon's chips. It's worth noting that other major cloud providers, such as Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, also offer credits that can be used for various AI models. However, these investments have drawn regulatory scrutiny, with the Federal Trade Commission launching an inquiry into generative AI investments and partnerships in January. Investors interested in Amazon's stock can explore options like SPDR Select Sector Fund - Consumer Discretionary (NYSE:XLY) and Vanguard Consumer Discretion ETF (NYSE:VCR). As of the last check on Tuesday, AMZN shares were down 1. 03% at $179. 11.