Modal Labs, founded by Erik Bernhardsson, is a serverless compute platform that focuses on high-performance workloads using CPUs and GPUs, facilitating nearly instant code deployments that allow developers to write locally and execute on Modal.com's cloud infrastructure. The platform is designed to simplify complex data pipelines and GPU-intensive tasks such as AI inference, providing multi-cloud orchestration to maximize productivity and minimize costs associated with idle hardware. By offering sub-second feedback loops, Modal enhances developer efficiency, making it an attractive solution for handling generative AI inference in the cloud while managing resources efficiently.