Cohere is negotiating a private funding round of $2 billion to $3 billion that could value the Toronto-based AI company at about $20 billion, according to people familiar with the talks. The amount and terms remain unsettled, and the financing could close as soon as next week, although Canada’s AI conference schedule may delay final paperwork while CEO Aidan Gomez attends several events. Ottawa and current supporters are involved, with most of the capital expected to come from non-government sources. Germany has also discussed joining the round, while Schwarz Group has said it will invest $600 million. If completed at the proposed valuation, the financing would be the largest ever for a privately held Canadian startup and would place Cohere among the country’s most valuable technology companies. Cohere last had a valuation marker of about $7 billion in September and told investors in February that it generated $240 million in annual recurring revenue in 2025. Founded in 2019, the company develops large language models for enterprise and government customers, including Royal Bank of Canada, BCE and Fujitsu, rather than focusing on consumer applications. In April, Cohere agreed to work with Germany’s Aleph Alpha to expand in Europe. Ottawa’s June AI strategy also included a $500 million pool that can take equity positions in domestic AI companies.