Apple has acquired Israel-based startup Q.ai, a move that could give the tech giant a much-needed boost to its capabilities in artificial intelligence. Apple did not disclose the terms of the deal, sources said. financial Times The arrangement is reportedly worth about $2 billion. If this figure is accurate, the Q.ai acquisition is Apple’s second-largest ever, behind its 2014 purchase of Beats for $3 billion.
Johnny Srouji, Apple’s senior vice president of hardware technologies, said in a statement that Q.ai is “a remarkable company that is pioneering new and creative ways to use imaging and machine learning.” Apple hasn’t shared any specific details about how it plans to leverage the startup, but its past work points to the possibility of Apple moving deeper into AI-powered wearables. “A patent filed by Q.ai shows its technology being used in headphones or glasses that use ‘facial skin micro-movements’ to communicate without talking.” Times Informed.
The startup’s founding team, including CEO Aviad Meizels, will join Apple as part of the deal. This acquisition marks Mayzel’s second sale to Apple; He previously founded a three-dimensional hearing business called PrimeSense which was purchased by Apple back in 2013.
For several months, many tech insiders have speculated that an acquisition could be Apple’s best path to get ahead in the AI race. In the company’s third quarter earnings call in July 2025, CEO Tim Cook acknowledged that “we are open to M&A that accelerates our roadmap.” Such a deal could eventually lead to Apple developing its own fully in-house AI chatbot instead of relying on a competitor like Google to power the artificial intelligence in its Siri assistant.
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