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Black Forest Labs

Black Forest Labs is a Germany-based company, founded in 2024 by former Stability AI researchers, that develops the FLUX family of text-to-image generation models.

DirectFoundation models
What it does

Black Forest Labs is a Germany-based company, founded in 2024 by former Stability AI researchers, that develops the FLUX family of text-to-image generation models.

Why it matters

Its FLUX models are widely used open-weight and API-based image generators, and the company briefly supplied the image-generation technology behind X's Grok chatbot before that relationship reportedly ended in 2025.

How it makes money

It licenses FLUX models through API access and enterprise deals and also releases open-weight versions.

Geography

Germany (Freiburg)

AI stack position

Foundation models and AI laboratories. The organizations actually building the AI models themselves, like the systems behind ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini. This is the most crowded, fastest-moving layer of the AI economy right now.

Connections (4)

Every connection below is tied to a readable source, date, classification and statement of its limits. A company source establishes what that company stated; it does not necessarily provide independent confirmation.

Current relationships (1)

NVIDIA invested in Black Forest Labs
Invested inCurrent
NVIDIA participated in Black Forest Labs' $300 million Series B funding round announced December 1, 2025, alongside Andreessen Horowitz and Salesforce Ventures.

Source: 2025-12-01 · reviewed 2026-09-20

Evidence: Primary-source statement · Completed

Limits: Does not establish ownership percentage, board representation, or any operating relationship beyond the equity investment.

Black Forest Labs Announces Series B Investment to Accelerate Frontier Visual Intelligence ↗

Dated or announced (1)

Black Forest Labs formerly supplied image-generation technology to SpaceXAI (formerly xAI)
SuppliesDated / announced
Black Forest Labs' FLUX models originally powered image generation in xAI's Grok chatbot beginning in 2024, but reporting in April 2025 indicated xAI was no longer working with Black Forest Labs.

Source: 2025-04-03 · reviewed 2026-09-20

Evidence: Secondary reporting (unconfirmed by primary parties) · Ended (per reporting)

Limits: Does not establish the exact end date, the reason for the change, or whether any technology relationship continues in reduced form; neither company issued a detailed public statement confirming the reporting.

Elon Musk's xAI no longer working with German startup Black Forest Labs ↗

Comparisons (2)

Stability AI competes with Black Forest Labs
Competes withComparison only
Stability AI and Black Forest Labs both develop open-weight text-to-image generation models, and several Black Forest Labs founders previously worked on Stable Diffusion at Stability AI.

Source: Source undated · reviewed 2026-09-20

Evidence: Analytical comparison · Ongoing

Limits: Does not establish any current business relationship, licensing, or shared ownership between the two firms.

Black Forest Labs Series B funding coverage ↗
Black Forest Labs competes with OpenAI
Competes withComparison only
Black Forest Labs' FLUX models and OpenAI's image-generation models compete in the text-to-image generation market.

Source: Source undated · reviewed 2026-09-20

Evidence: Analytical comparison · Ongoing

Limits: Does not establish market share or revenue comparison.

Black Forest Labs company overview ↗

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Inclusion in this database is not an endorsement of a company or its securities. Nothing here is a recommendation to buy or sell anything, and none of it is individualized investment advice. See the disclosures. Data: AI Map v3.22, released .