Cisco Systems Inc. has announced the launch of a $1 billion investment fund aimed at supporting startups focused on developing secure and reliable artificial intelligence (AI) services. The company disclosed its initial investments in AI startups Cohere, Mistral AI, and Scale AI. This initiative is part of Cisco's broader strategy to advance intelligent networking and security. Cisco has already committed nearly $200 million to these startups, with Cohere securing $450 million in a funding round joined by NVIDIA and Salesforce, bringing its valuation to $5 billion. Cohere's annual recurring revenue (ARR) jumped from $13 million to $35 million in one year.