Moonshot’s upcoming Kimi 3 is expected to close the gap with Anthropic’s Opus 4.8

The upcoming Kimi 3 model from Chinese AI lab Moonshot AI is anticipated to match or even exceed the performance of Anthropic's Opus 4.8, according to sources cited by the Financial Times. The Kimi K2 models have already made a significant impact in the open-source AI sector, achieving high rankings on various benchmarks and showcasing capabilities that closely align with leading-edge models. As Moonshot prepares to launch Kimi 3, expectations are high for it to further bridge the gap with proprietary models from developers such as OpenAI and Anthropic. Reports indicate that Kimi 3 will be the largest open-weight AI model originating from China, boasting a staggering parameter count estimated between 2 trillion and 3 trillion. This model is set to debut in the near future. In addition to its product advancements, Moonshot is reportedly in the process of securing additional funding, which could elevate its valuation to $31.5 billion. Earlier this year, the company successfully raised $2 billion, achieving a valuation of $20 billion. This development arrives amid ongoing discussions regarding the value of investing in AI labs like OpenAI and Anthropic, known for their costly closed-source models. Industry experts express concern that these labs may leverage user-provided data in their AI solutions, such as ChatGPT and Claude. Consequently, executives are advocating for alternative products or suggesting that companies utilize more affordable open-source models developed by firms like DeepSeek, Z.ai, or Moonshot, and customize them for their needs. This narrative is gaining traction as open-source options from China continue to close the performance gap with pricier frontier models.