Apple executives have reportedly discussed acquiring Mistral AI and Perplexity, The Information reports.
Services chief Eddy Cue is apparently the most vocal advocate of a deal to buy AI firms to bolster the company’s offerings. Cue previously supported propositions of Apple acquiring Netflix and Tesla, both of which Apple CEO Tim Cook turned down. Other executives such as software chief Craig Federighi have reportedly been reluctant to acquire AI startups, believing that Apple can build its own AI technology in-house.
Mistral AI is a Paris-based artificial intelligence company founded in 2023 that develops open-weight large language models designed to be smaller, faster, and easier to deploy than many competitors, while still delivering strong performance across reasoning and coding tasks. The company positions itself as a European alternative to American players like OpenAI and Anthropic.
Perplexity is a U.S.-based artificial intelligence company that builds an AI-powered search and answer engine combining large language models with real-time web indexing to provide cited, conversational responses. Unlike traditional search engines, it prioritizes transparency by showing sources alongside answers, positioning itself as an alternative to Google for information retrieval.
Apple is said to be hesitant to do a deal, which would likely cost billions of dollars. Apple has rarely spent more than a hundred million dollars on an acquision, with Beats at $3 billion and Intel’s wireless modem business at $1 billion.
If a federal ruling ends the $20 billion deal between Apple and Alphabet that makes Google the default search engine on its devices, the company could be compelled to acquire an AI-powered search startup to fill that gap. For now, Apple apparently told bankers that it plans to continue with its strategy of focusing on smaller deals in AI.
Popular Stories
AirPods Pro 3 Expected to Launch This Year With Key New Feature
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman expects Apple to release new AirPods Pro this year, and he said the earbuds will have a key new feature: heart rate monitoring. From his Power On newsletter today, with emphasis added:As for Apple’s other devices, there’s a lot in the fall pipeline — though many of the new products are only incremental upgrades. There will be Apple Watch updates, faster Vision…
iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 12 New Features
Apple’s iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max should be unveiled in a few more weeks, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman corroborated a rumor that iPhone 17 Pro models will be “available in an orange color.” Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models: Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are…
Two All-New iPhone 17 Colors Seemingly Confirmed
Apple will offer the upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max in a new orange color, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Gurman made the claim in the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, adding that the new iPhone 17 Air – replacing the iPhone 16 Plus – will come in a new light blue color. We’ve heard multiple rumors about a new iPhone 17 Pro color being a shade of orange. The …
Apple Has Reportedly Considered Releasing iPhone 17 Air Bumper Case
Apple has “considered” releasing a bumper case for the upcoming iPhone 17 Air, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman. Similar to the bumper case that Apple introduced for the iPhone 4 in 2010, Gurman said the iPhone 17 Air version of the case would cover the edges of the device, but not the back of it. Those bumper cases were made of rubber. Given that the iPhone 17 Air is expected to have …
Apple Watch Ultra 3 Just Weeks Away: Eight Reasons to Upgrade
We’re only weeks away from Apple’s annual iPhone event – rumored to take place on September 9 – and along with the new iPhone 17 series, we’re going to get a new version of the Apple Watch Ultra for the first time since 2023. By the time the Ultra 3 is unveiled, it will have been two years since the previous model arrived. The intervening period has left plenty of room for enhancements,…
The MacRumors Show: Apple Watch Series 11 and Ultra 3 or Wait for Next Year?
On this week’s episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through what to expect from the Apple Watch SE 3, Series 11, and Ultra 3, and whether it’s worth holding off on an upgrade until next year. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos The third-generation Apple Watch SE is rumored to feature a larger display (perhaps like the Apple Watch Series 7), the S11 chip, and…