I wonder whether there is a way to use existing model weights (e.g. from open llms) to populate other types of models with a set of weights closer to final stat

I wonder whether there is a way to use existing model weights (e.g. from open llms) to populate other types of models with a set of weights closer to final state than where'd they would have started from scratch. I am very much speaking from a position of ignorance, but being mechanistically derived.....