Apple Acquires Artificial Intelligence Company Xnor.ai

Apple has purchased Seattle startup Xnor.ai, a company that specializes in on-device artificial intelligence, reports GeekWire, citing sources with knowledge of the acquisition.

Apple is said to have paid around $200 million for Xnor.ai, and while both Apple and Xnor.ai have declined to comment on the potential acquisition, much of the Xnor.ai website has been taken offline and GeekWire says that a move from the Xnor.ai offices is taking place in Seattle.

applexnoracquisition
Xnor.ai's technology lets companies run deep learning algorithms locally on devices that include smartphones and wearables rather than requiring these computations to be done in the cloud. Xnor promised complete privacy of data along with reduced memory load and power demands.


Given Apple's deep interest in personal privacy, an acquisition of technology for handling AI on device is unsurprising. Apple has, in the past, purchased other similar AI companies, such as Turi.

Xnor.ai's work could potentially be incorporated into future iPhones, improving Siri and other AI and machine learning-based tasks that are done on device.

Update: Apple confirmed the acquisition of Xnor.ai to Axios with its standard acquisition statement: "Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans."

Popular Stories

Home Hub Command Center with Dome Base Feature

Apple Working on All-New Operating System

Thursday September 25, 2025 1:11 pm PDT by
Apple is developing an all-new operating system codenamed "Charismatic," according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple smart home hub concept based on rumors This is likely Apple's long-rumored "homeOS" operating system. In a report last month, Gurman said both Apple's rumored smart home hub in 2026 and tabletop robot in 2027 will run the new operating system. He said the software platform ...
iOS 26 Battery Glass Feature

iPhone 16 Pro Max 80% Charge Limit: One Year Later, Was It Worth It?

Wednesday September 24, 2025 3:58 pm PDT by
With the iPhone 15 series, I did an experiment and kept my iPhone's Charge Limit set at 80 percent for an entire year. It provided an interesting look at the impact of charge limits on battery longevity, so I decided to repeat it for the iPhone 16 line. Since September 2024, my iPhone 16 Pro Max has been limited to an 80 percent charge, with no cheating. As of today, my battery's maximum...
iOS 26

Apple Continues to Prepare iOS 26.0.1 With Multiple Bug Fixes Expected

Sunday September 28, 2025 1:30 pm PDT by
Apple is preparing to release iOS 26.0.1, according to a private account on X with a proven track record of sharing information about future iOS versions. The account initially said iOS 26.0.1 would have a build number of 23A350, but they now expect the update to have a build number of 23A355. This suggests that the software update will include more bug fixes or changes than initially...
Apple MacBook Pro M4 hero

New MacBook Pro Nears Mass Production, But Four Bigger Upgrades Expected Next Year

Sunday September 28, 2025 2:08 pm PDT by
Apple's next MacBook Pro models will enter mass production soon, according to the latest information shared by Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. In his Power On newsletter today, Gurman said he continues to believe the new MacBook Pro models will be released at some point between late 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, meaning they should be available to order by March at the latest. Apple often...
AirPods Pro 3 Newsroom

Apple's 'Back to School' Offer Ends Soon, Now Applies to AirPods Pro 3

Wednesday September 24, 2025 7:20 am PDT by
Apple's annual "Back to School" promotion for students ends soon, so act fast if you want to score free AirPods with the purchase of an eligible new Mac or iPad. Until Tuesday, September 30, college students and qualifying educational staff in the U.S. can receive free AirPods 4 with Active Noise Cancellation when they purchase an eligible new Mac or iPad from Apple. This is a $179 value. ...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

Skipped the iPhone 17 Pro? Here's What is Rumored for iPhone 18 Pro

Tuesday September 23, 2025 8:55 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are still a year away, there are already a few rumors about the devices that offer an early look ahead. Below, we have recapped some of the early iPhone 18 Pro rumors so far. This story was published previously, and it has been updated to reflect the latest rumors. Many early rumors prove to be true, but nothing is confirmed yet, and Apple's...
iphone 17 ceramic shield

Regular iPhone 17's USB-C Charging Speeds Tested With Apple Chargers

Friday September 26, 2025 9:01 am PDT by
The website ChargerLAB has tested the standard iPhone 17 model's USB-C charging speeds with a variety of Apple's chargers, from 18W to 140W. The device reached a peak charging speed of around 27W to 28W with these Apple chargers:29W USB-C Power Adapter 30W USB-C Power Adapter 35W Dual USB-C Port Power Adapter 35W Dual USB-C Port Compact Power Adapter 40W Dynamic Power Adapter with 60W Max...
Apple More Personal Siri Ad

Apple Responds to U.S. Class Action Lawsuit Over Delayed Siri Features

Friday September 26, 2025 6:57 am PDT by
In March, Apple delayed the launch of its personalized Siri features, and soon after the company was hit with multiple class action lawsuits over the situation. The plaintiffs said they never would have purchased an iPhone 16, or would have paid less, had they known Apple's marketing about the Siri features was false. In the U.S., all of the complaints were consolidated into one class...
maxresdefault

Review: A Week With the iPhone 17 Pro

Friday September 26, 2025 12:51 pm PDT by
Apple's iPhone 17 models have been out for a week now, so we thought we'd do a longer-term review of the flagship iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max now that we've been able to spend more time with them. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. MacRumors videographer Dan Barbera has a Silver iPhone 17 Pro and a Cosmic Orange iPhone 17 Pro Max, and despite a lot of concern over...

Top Rated Comments

Archmage Avatar
75 months ago
Well this probably explains why Xnor.ai terminated their contract for person detection with Wyze
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
farewelwilliams Avatar
75 months ago
Wonder if Apple told them "dump Wyze first, then we have a deal"
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Baymowe335 Avatar
75 months ago

Xnor.ai's technology lets companies run deep learning algorithms locally on devices that include smartphones and wearables rather than requiring these computations to be done in the cloud.
Now we're going to see why Apple has spent so many resources in their industry leading A-Series chips.

"I don't need this A13 performance to open Instagram" is going to look pretty silly. Apple has been building this technology for the larger picture.


If ya can't beat em, buy em...
Yeah, I'm sure Apple was shaking in their boots at competing with a $200M AI startup.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cubedweller Avatar
75 months ago

I love the headline "Apple Acquires...."

Then in the article: "Apple is said to have paid around $200 million for Xnor.ai, and while both Apple and Xnor.ai have declined to comment on the potential acquisition, much of the Xnor.ai website has been taken offline and GeekWire says that a move from the Xnor.ai offices is taking place in Seattle."

Hey Macrumors editor in chief! That's what we (in the news industry) call a "rumor based on speculation".

I know times are getting really tough for writers/publishers... believe me I know. But please ensure your headlines honestly reflect the nature of the story. It's a standard we all rely on for ethical reporting. (This was likely an error, but one that should not have happened given the very nature of the content on this site.)
You realize that Apple has confirmed via Axios, right? Maybe it's time you get off your soapbox.
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LiveM Avatar
75 months ago

BTW, AI is NO smarter than whoever is coding the algorithms !
That’s like saying you will never be smarter than your parents. AI is proven to do things, such as making up languages to communicate with other AI that are more efficient that what they are programmed to use. They can go way beyond what their minders can monitor.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
twolf2919 Avatar
75 months ago

Probably intent to bolster their Siri offerings.

There's a significant gap that Siri needs to pick up on to keep up to date featurewise with Amazon's or Google's AI work.

I don't think Apple has done a terrible job, but it's clear that on their own they haven't quite the same level of success as their competitors. Likely this will be a big injection of technology, and smart people.
I'm the biggest Apple fan, but even I have to say Apple has done a terrible job with Siri. Not so much with its recognition abilities - which I view on par with Google and Alexa - but with Siri without a network. I mean, come on!, why do I need a network connection for Siri to be able to change the volume on my iPhone Nothing more frustrating than using APPLE AirPods - which need Siri for pretty much everything - and not being able to do the most basic things without a network.

I hope this acquisition is an indication that Apple is finally getting off its a$$ and - after, what, a decade? - makes more of Siri available on-device.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)