Apple Is Looking Into Buying AI Chip Companies for Private Cloud Compute

Marcus Mendes, reporting for 9to5Mac:

According to The Information, Apple has been exploring potential acquisitions of semiconductor startups to “boost its efforts to build server chips for running AI.”

From the report:

In recent months, the iPhone maker has talked with bankers about possible deals. It has also approached semiconductor startups to gauge their interest in selling themselves, the people said. Apple’s hunt for chip acquisitions comes as the company struggles with the performance of its own internal AI servers, which currently run on internally designed M2 Ultra chips.

The Information says Apple’s next-generation server chip, code-named Baltra, has slipped past its planned 2026 debut. In the meantime, Apple is using M2 Ultra-based systems for some of its own AI processing, while the more demanding tasks are handled by the Gemini-based model powering the new Siri, which runs on Nvidia GPUs in Google Cloud.

A big acquisition would be a departure from Apple’s usual M.O. of buying smaller startups from time to time, but it wouldn’t be unprecedented.

It would indeed be unusual for Apple to purchase a Silicon Valley start-up specializing in artificial intelligence processors, when Apple arguably makes the best consumer AI chips. As Bloomberg has reported extensively, Apple’s consumer processor strategy — for high-end Mac models, at least — has shifted considerably toward AI. People like buying Mac Studios and Mac minis to do local AI inference — they’ve become popular as cloud computers and mini data centers. Per The Information’s reporting, Apple’s internal processors are also on that trajectory, albeit delayed for unclear reasons. Apple’s processors aren’t just fast and capable of AI inference, but they’re extremely efficient, which makes them relatively inexpensive to use in the long run. It’s no wonder why Apple has retaken the No. 1 market capitalization, surpassing Nvidia on Friday.

Regardless, this news is quite interesting because it proves Ap…