Yann LeCun, Meta's former AI chief, has raised $1 billion for a new startup, with reported valuations as high as $3.5 billion. The funding will be used to build "world models" and develop an alternative approach to artificial intelligence. The exact goals and methods of the startup, AMI Labs, are not entirely clear, but it appears to be focused on creating AI that understands the physical world, potentially as a counter to existing models.