Apple acquires secretive Israeli AI startup Q.ai for $1.5 billion
The little-known company, led by PrimeSense founder Aviad Maizels, has been working on whispered speech and advanced audio technologies for wearable devices.
Apple is acquiring Israeli AI startup Q.ai, the technology giant confirmed on Thursday. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the purchase price is estimated at $1.5 billion. This marks Apple's second-largest acquisition ever after the $3 billion purchase of Beats in 2014.
For Q.ai founder and CEO Aviad Maizels, this marks a second exit to Apple. In 2013, Apple acquired one of his previous startups, PrimeSense, in a deal estimated at $350 million. The PrimeSense deal eventually helped Apple move away from fingerprint sensors on its iPhones and toward facial recognition technology.
Maizels founded Q.ai in 2022, shortly after leaving Apple, together with Dr. Yonatan Wexler (CTO), formerly of OrCam, and artificial intelligence researcher Dr. Avi Barliya. The company, headquartered in Ramat Gan, raised $24.5 million in funding in January 2023, with investors in the startup including venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins, Google’s Gradient Ventures fund, and the funds Aleph, Matter, Exor and Corner Ventures.
The startup has operated largely in stealth mode, and little is publicly known about its product. According to Apple, Q.ai develops innovative machine learning applications designed to transform audio and communication experiences, including technology that enables whisper-like speech and improves audio performance in challenging environments.
These technologies could be used to enhance communication with wearable devices such as AirPods or Apple’s Vision Pro headset, and to enable more natural and effective interaction with the Siri AI assistant.
Apple did not disclose what Q.ai's technology will be used for. In a statement, Maizels said "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."
Apple has been putting new AI features into its AirPods earbuds, last year introducing technology that allows them to translate speech between languages.
Q.ai "is a remarkable company that is pioneering new and creative ways to use imaging and machine learning," Johny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies and the company’s most senior Israeli executive, said in a statement. "We’re thrilled to acquire the company, with Aviad at the helm, and are even more excited for what’s to come."
Q.ai co-founders, Maizels, Wexler and Barliya will all join Apple, the companies said.
