In a bold move that signals growing interest in human-AI collaboration, Jeff Bezos has led a $72 million investment in Toloka, an AI startup focused on blending machine intelligence with human judgment. The funding round was spearheaded by Bezos’ personal investment firm, Bezos Expeditions, with notable participation from Shopify CTO Mikhail Parakhin, who will also take on a new role as executive chairman of Toloka’s board.
This funding comes at a turning point for Toloka, which plans to use the capital to deepen its U.S. footprint and accelerate product development. The company’s mission centers on using real human input to train, evaluate, and fine-tune AI models—ensuring that results aren’t just fast, but accurate and trustworthy.
Toloka’s roots trace back to Amsterdam-based Nebius Group, which emerged from Russian tech giant Yandex following a massive $5.4 billion corporate split last year. That separation—the largest exit from Russia’s tech scene since the Ukraine war began—has given Toloka the independence needed to attract global backers like Bezos.
In a public statement, Toloka said the investment marks a “pivotal step” as it looks to rapidly scale and sharpen its focus amid surging demand for high-quality AI training data.
For CEO Olga Megorskaya, this round means more than growth—it means autonomy. With Nebius retaining financial majority but relinquishing voting control, Toloka now has greater freedom to operate on its own terms. That’s key for expanding globally and landing future rounds from U.S.-based investors.
A Major Endorsement for Human-Centered AI
Bezos’ involvement gives Toloka instant credibility in Western markets that may have previously hesitated due to its historical ties to Russia. It also reflects a broader shift in how tech leaders view the future of artificial intelligence—not as a fully automated system, but as a partnership between humans and machines.
Shopify’s Mikhail Parakhin stepping into a leadership role reinforces that strategic pivot. His dual expertise in tech innovation and platform growth will likely shape Toloka’s next phase as it positions itself as a vital player in the human-AI collaboration space.
Speaking about the investment, Nebius Group founder and CEO Arkady Volozh praised Toloka’s progress: “This is the best way for Toloka to accelerate its growth and capitalize on the enormous opportunities of the AI revolution.”
Humans Remain Essential to AI’s Future
While AI has made leaps in speed and scale, it still stumbles on nuance. That’s where Toloka comes in. Its platform taps into a distributed network of human testers to assess and verify AI-generated content. Whether it’s training large language models or testing for bias and safety, Toloka ensures human oversight stays at the core.
“There will always be a need for control, verification, and help from human experts to ensure that the result is actually of high quality,” Megorskaya told Reuters.
This philosophy resonates strongly in an era where AI hallucinations and misinformation can spread quickly if unchecked. Companies like Amazon, Microsoft, and Anthropic have already turned to Toloka for its services—another sign of rising demand for robust, human-centered AI training.
Looking Ahead: Independent Growth and Global Ambitions
With this funding secured, Toloka is setting its sights on further expansion and innovation. The leadership team has hinted at additional fundraising down the road, as well as a sharpened focus on building out U.S. operations.
While Bezos Expeditions has not issued a public comment, the significance of this deal is clear: it marks a vote of confidence in the idea that true AI progress doesn’t replace humans—it partners with them.
