Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) said on Friday it was releasing a new large language model based on artificial intelligence (AI) aimed at the research community, becoming the latest company to join the AI race.

The battle to dominate the AI technology space, which until recently existed in the background, kicked off late last year with the launch of Microsoft-backed OpenAI's ChatGPT and prompted tech heavyweights from Alphabet Inc to China's Baidu Inc, to create their own offerings.

Meta's LLaMA, short for Large Language Model Meta AI, will be available under non-commercial license to researchers and entities affiliated with government, civil society, and academia,