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Key Takeaways
- Apple reportedly bought DarwinAI, a Canadian artificial intelligence startup, as Apple works to establish its place in the AI boom.
- The iPhone maker absorbed several of DarwinAI’s employees, Bloomberg reported.
- On the company’s latest earnings call, CEO Tim Cook indicated Apple has been quietly working on AI projects and will make a related announcement later in the year.
- Bank of America analysts have said Apple could be positioned to gain from an accelerated iPhone upgrade cycle in 2025 driven by AI-capable devices.
Apple (AAPL) shares edged 1% higher Thursday amid reports that the company bought DarwinAI, a Canadian artificial intelligence (AI) startup, in what could be an important step in the iPhone maker establishing its place in the AI boom.
The company acquired DarwinAI in early 2024, absorbing dozens of the AI startup’s employees, Bloomberg reported.
Compared to some of its big tech peers like Microsoft (MSFT), Google parent Alphabet (GOOGL), and Meta (META), the iPhone maker has lagged in publicly integrating AI tech into its products and services.
On the company’s latest earnings call, CEO Tim Cook said that Apple has “some things that we’re incredibly excited about, that we’ll be talking about later this year.”
He noted that there is “a lot of work going on internally,” but that Apple is not announcing details yet to not “get out in front” of itself. Cook did say “there’s a huge opportunity for Apple with GenAI and AI.”
Bank of America analysts have given Apple a “buy” rating, saying that they expect an accelerated iPhone upgrade cycle in 2025 driven by AI-capable devices.
Apple shares finished 1% higher at $173 Thursday. The stock has fallen more than 6% since the start of 2024, though it’s gained 13% in the past year.