Apple has decided to withdraw from discussions regarding participation in OpenAI’s latest funding round, which aims to raise up to $6.5 billion. This decision comes just before the round’s expected closure next week, marking an unexpected turn in what could have been a rare investment by the tech giant in another major Silicon Valley company. This comes after it was revealed in August that Apple will be following Microsoft’s footsteps and invest in OpenAI.
Despite opting out of the investment opportunity, Apple’s interest in OpenAI’s technology remains evident. The company announced the use of OpenAI services during its WWDC event in June, with plans to integrate ChatGPT functionalities into the upcoming iOS 18 update.
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Microsoft, which has already invested $13 billion in OpenAI, is expected to contribute an additional $1 billion. Nvidia is also reportedly in talks to participate.
Venture capital firm Thrive Capital is leading the round with a planned $1 billion investment. Other potential investors include Tiger Global Management and UAE-backed firm MGX.
OpenAI is working to transition from a nonprofit to a for-profit entity, a move encouraged by many investors in the current round. This change comes with a two-year deadline, after which investors can request refunds if the change is not completed.
More here.
I wonder if they will only use OpenAI until their own system is mature. Then cut over to it. Kinda like they did with Maps, they used Google as the default, but now have their own system.
And, to be fair, Apple has a history of doing just that. Regarding hardware, e.g., there is Intel with CPUs and Qualcomm with modems (though, in this case, Apple simply purchased Intel’s modem business and developed its own components from that). I’d guess Apple also considered building their own search engine, or buying a search engine company, to get rid of Google completely, but decided against that because it would require too much money.