Apple has decided not to participate in OpenAI's new investment round, according to reports from The Wall Street Journal (WSJ). The funding round, which could close in the next few days, seeks to raise $6.5 billion, and OpenAI's valuation is expected to reach $150 billion. While giants such as Microsoft and NVIDIA are likely to join the initiative, Apple has opted to stay on the sidelines. This decision has important strategic underpinnings, and one of the main reasons is that the Cupertino company wants to maintain a neutral stance on artificial intelligence.
Maintaining Neutrality in the AI Market
Apple has been cautious about investing in tech startups, which makes its absence from this investment round not entirely surprising. While Apple has made one-off investments in the past,such as in Didi Chuxing in 2016 or SoftBank's Vision Fund in 2017, it generally focuses on strengthening its pipeline and internal projects rather than betting on other emerging tech companies. Apple's neutrality is key in this context. When unveiling its new artificial intelligence platform, Apple Intelligence, the company made it clear that, while ChatGPT might be an option for some users, they were open to incorporating other alternatives, such as Google's Gemini. Investing in OpenAI could have compromised this neutrality and limited their ability to offer a diversity of tools and services to their users.
Microsoft, NVIDIA and Other Investors
On the other hand, Microsoft, which has already invested billions in OpenAI, and NVIDIA are among the leading candidates to participate in this investment round. Despite their presence, the most prominent role is expected to be taken by Thrive Capital, which could lead the investment with $1 billion. In addition, UAE-backed firm MGX could also play an important role in the financing. Apple, for its part, appears to be betting on the development of its own AI technology. Although the deployment of Apple Intelligence is in its early stages and its functionalities will be limited initially, the company is relying on its ecosystem to establish itself as a major player in the future of artificial intelligence. Its decision not to invest in OpenAI may be a sign of the confidence it has in its own platform and its ability to compete in this evolving industry.
