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Apple has acquired Q.AI, a secretive Israeli start-up whose technology can analyze facial expressions to understand “silent speech”, in one of the iPhone maker’s biggest acquisitions to date.
The deal is designed to help the iPhone maker close its gap with Meta, Google and OpenAI in the growing race to create new types of wearable devices to talk to AI.
The deal valued the four-year-old Q.AI at about $2 billion, according to people familiar with the terms.
In a blog post, one of Q.AI’s financial backers, GV – formerly Google Ventures – said the deal is Apple’s “second largest acquisition in its history”.
A patent filed by Q.AI shows its technology being used in headphones or glasses that use “micro-movements of facial skin” to communicate without talking.
Such a system could allow Apple customers wearing headphones and smart glasses to have private, non-verbal discussions with an AI assistant.
Johnny Sruzzi, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies, said that Q.AI is “a remarkable company that is pioneering new and creative ways to use imaging and machine learning”.
Silicon Valley companies are also racing to develop rival AI-powered “wearable” devices.
Meta has seen success with its Ray-Ban-branded smart glasses, which let wearers talk to its AI, while Google and Snap are preparing to launch smart glasses later this year.
OpenAI last year acquired former Apple designer Jony Ive’s start-up IO, which is said to be developing a compact device to interact with ChatGPT.
Investors are worried that Apple will be left behind in the AI ​​race after delaying the launch of its advanced Siri voice assistant, a system widely considered to be far behind Google Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPIT.
It recently inked a deal with Google to use the search group’s Gemini system to power its AI services branded Apple Intelligence.
Apple rarely makes large acquisitions, instead preferring to quietly “acquire” talent from smaller start-ups, which often fly under the radar.
Its biggest deal to date is its $3 billion acquisition of Beats in 2014, which helped the tech giant join forces with Spotify as it moved into music streaming with Apple Music.
Some of its biggest acquisitions have been in the semiconductor sector as it has brought more of its chip designs in-house over the years. These include the $1 billion acquisition of Intel’s smartphone modem business in 2019, the $600 million acquisition of Dialog Semiconductor in 2018, and the $500 million acquisition of Israeli flash memory firm Anobit in 2011.
Other recent deals have reflected the iPhone maker’s focus on computer vision and artificial intelligence, following the launch of the Vision Pro headset and ‘Apple iIntelligence’, its suite of AI features. These include last year’s acquisition of Israeli 3D avatar start-up TrueMeeting and generative AI company Pointable.
Q.AI was founded in 2022 in Tel Aviv by Aviad Meizels, Yonatan Wexler, and Avi Baralia. It has been working largely in secret since then, with Wexler hinting in a social media post shortly after its launch: “I can’t tell you anything about our product yet – but I’m sure it will leave you speechless.”
Its financial backers also include Kleiner Perkins, Spark Capital and Exor.
Some of the Q.AI team previously worked at another Israeli start-up, PrimeSense, which was acquired by Apple in 2013. PrimeSense’s 3D sensing technology formed a key part of the iPhone’s FaceID login system.
