Apple enters the AI race after acquiring Canadian startup DarwinAI،
Well, well: look what the cat dragged in! Apple is now joining the AI party!
BloombergMark Gurman, always one step ahead of the rest, claims that Apple recently acquired Canadian artificial intelligence startup DarwinAI. Such a move was long overdue, given that everyone (i.e. the rest of the huge intergalactic corporations) is making their AI moves and Apple is so far lagging behind.
The acquisition is part of Apple's ambitious AI expansion planned for this year, with generative AI features coming to iOS 18 later in 2024. Apple CEO Tim Cook hinted at groundbreaking developments in AI, with major announcements expected at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June.
According to the report, the acquisition was completed “earlier this year” and led to many DarwinAI employees joining Apple's AI division, a move that has remained confidential until now.
DarwinAI is about technologies that improve visual inspection of manufacturing components in various industries, while also working to compress AI systems to operate more efficiently and quickly. This expertise is particularly relevant as part of Apple's focus on device-based AI processing, rather than relying solely on cloud computing.
Notable members of the team transitioning to Apple include Alexander Wong, a prominent AI researcher at the University of Waterloo, who co-founded DarwinAI and took a leadership role on Apple's AI team .
Following the announcement of the acquisition, Apple stock saw a temporary increase of more than 1%, indicating positive market reception.
Speaking of stocks, Apple shares hit their 2024 low last week, trading at $169. In January 2024, it was around $195.
Other giant companies have ridden the recent AI wave with more success: the AI-fueled hype is paying off. Microsoft stock is up 8.5% this year, which pales in comparison to Nvidia stock which has soared 78% in 2024 alone, with a market capitalization close to Apple in size.
In contrast, Apple appears to be somewhat behind the times when it comes to AI, having not announced any major generative AI features so far. However, rumors indicate that this is set to change at WWDC in June, with iOS 18 offering deep AI integration across the system.
2023 was a blessing from above for Nvidia. With brutal gains of 240%, it was the best performing stock in the S&P 500 in 2023. Shares of Arm Holdings (another chip manufacturing company that has recently moved into AI) have also seen an incredible 80% jump in recent weeks – driven by the high demand for AI chips.
It was only recently that Nvidia eclipsed Alphabet (think Google) as the third most valuable American company. Ahead of Nvidia are only Microsoft (currently number one) and silver medalist Apple.
