Apple (AAPL) is reportedly eyeing a serious funding in OpenAI, together with Nvidia (NVDA), that will worth the ChatGPT maker at a whopping $100 billion, The Wall Avenue Journal first reported yesterday (Aug. 29). The fundraising spherical can even contain Microsoft (MSFT), at the moment OpenAI’s largest company backer, in keeping with the Journal. In contrast with its Massive Tech friends, Apple has traditionally been a lot quieter about its A.I. plans. However that doesn’t imply the corporate hasn’t been bolstering its investments within the subject via a mix of startup acquisitions and strategic partnerships.
Throughout its Worldwide Builders Convention in June, Apple CEO Tim Cook dinner unveiled the corporate’s first suite of A.I. choices, often known as Apple Intelligence. Cook dinner additionally introduced a partnership with OpenAI that may combine ChatGPT throughout varied Apple merchandise. Apple’s ties with OpenAI had been additional strengthened when the iPhone maker almost joined the startup’s board with a nonvoting seat, though each Apple and Microsoft have since withdrawn from their OpenAI board roles because the involvement attracts antitrust scrutiny.
Apple approaches A.I. otherwise than its Massive Tech friends
Apple’s potential backing of OpenAI is a seemingly uncommon transfer for the Massive Tech participant, which has made a restricted variety of startup investments since its 1974 institution. Of the 30 investments it has remodeled the previous few many years, solely three have been A.I.-related, in keeping with information from Crunchbase. These embody a $2.5 million funding in Adobe in 1984 and participation in funding rounds in 2016 for Volley, an enterprise machine studying platform, and Chinese language ride-hailing large DiDi, the latter of which noticed Apple make investments $1 billion.
Whereas Apple might not be essentially the most outstanding investor in A.I., it has been quietly build up an arsenal of corporations engaged on the know-how. Between 2017 and September 2023, Apple reportedly acquired a complete of 21 A.I. startups—making it the highest A.I. startup purchaser and much exceeding the variety of corporations acquired by its rivals. International consulting agency Accenture acquired the second-highest quantity at 19, whereas Microsoft got here in third with 12.
Apple’s acquisition roster contains the likes of WaveOne, a California-based startup utilizing A.I. to help in video compression, and AI Music, a U.Okay. firm producing music with the know-how. This 12 months, Apple has acquired DarwinAI, a Canadian firm specializing in utilizing A.I. to enhance manufacturing, and Datakalab, a French startup specializing in A.I. compression and pc imaginative and prescient.
Cook dinner addressed Apple’s refined technique whereas talking to analysts throughout an earnings name final 12 months. “In fact, we’ve been doing analysis throughout a variety of A.I. applied sciences, together with generative A.I., for years,” he instructed analysts in August 2023 when requested why Apple is extra silent than rivals on its A.I. investments. “As you already know, we are likely to announce issues as they arrive to market. That’s our M.O. and I’d like to stay to that,” he added.
