Apple Acquires AI Audio Company Q.ai
The startup is estimated to be valued at $2 billion
Apple has purchased Q.ai, a startup developing AI for audio companies. With a potential value of $2 billion, this would be Apple’s second-largest acquisition ever, behind its purchase of Beats for $3 billion in 2014.
The details:
Reuters reported Q.ai’s value to be $1.6 billion. Financial Times reported it “close to $2bn.”
All 100 employees of the startup will join Apple.
Q.ai’s tech is designed to examine “silent speech” such as “facial skin micro movements.”
These communications will theoretically be analyzed by headphones or glasses.
What they said:
Johny Srouji, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Hardware Technologies: “[Q.ai] is a remarkable company that is pioneering new and creative ways to use imaging and machine learning. We’re thrilled to acquire the company, with Aviad at the helm, and are even more excited for what’s to come.”
Aviad Maizels, CEO of Q.ai: “Joining Apple opens extraordinary possibilities for pushing boundaries and realizing the full potential of what we’ve created, and we’re thrilled to bring these experiences to people everywhere.”
👋 Disclosures & Transparency Block
This article was written with information sourced from Music Business Worldwide.
We covered it because it represents a major development in AI’s entry into the music industry.
