Jeff Bezos, through his personal investment firm Bezos Expeditions, is spearheading a $72 million investment into Toloka, an artificial intelligence (AI) data solutions company. Toloka, which specializes in training and evaluating AI models by leveraging a network of human experts, revealed the investment news to Reuters on Wednesday.
Toloka is part of the Nasdaq-listed Nebius Group (NBIS.O), an AI infrastructure firm that has worked with prominent tech giants such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Anthropic. Based in Amsterdam, Nebius emerged from a significant $5.4 billion deal last year, which resulted in the separation of the domestic and international assets of Russian internet powerhouse Yandex, marking one of the largest corporate exits from Russia following the invasion of Ukraine.
Toloka’s CEO and founder, Olga Megorskaya, called the investment a significant milestone for the company, which will help accelerate growth, particularly in the U.S. market. The funds will also support the development of Toloka’s AI-driven products, which rely on collaboration between human experts and AI agents.
🌐 Strategic Investment Drives Growth
Megorskaya emphasized the importance of maintaining human oversight in AI processes. “There will always be a need for control, verification, and assistance from human experts to ensure that the results are truly high quality,” she told Reuters.
Toloka’s ability to attract this level of investment was previously hindered by sanctions that prohibited U.S. investments in Russian businesses. However, with the split from Yandex finalized, Toloka now has the opportunity to partner with prominent figures like Bezos, marking a key shift in the company’s trajectory. Notably, Nvidia also participated in a $700 million private placement raised by Nebius late last year.
💡 New Leadership and Future Growth
In addition to Bezos Expeditions, Mikhail Parakhin, Chief Technology Officer of Canadian e-commerce giant Shopify, is also participating in the investment. Parakhin will join Toloka’s board of directors as the new Executive Chairman. He expressed his enthusiasm about joining the company at a time when demand for AI data expertise is more critical than ever.
Toloka will continue to be supported by Nebius as a shareholder, though it will now operate with greater flexibility, as it has relinquished its majority voting control. Megorskaya confirmed that the company is preparing for another investment round in the future.
This strategic investment is expected to help Toloka scale its operations and deepen its collaboration with leading AI firms worldwide.