Apple Buys Artificial Intelligence Firm Turi

Apple has acquired Seattle-based artificial intelligence (AI) specialist Turi in a deal reported to be worth around $200m.

The company started at Carnegie Mellon in 2009, as an open source project under the guidance of founder Carlos Guestrin (pictured), Amazon Professor of Machine Learning at the University of Washington. Previously called Dato, Turi offers access to a machine learning and AI combined platform known as GraphLab Create, which mines patterns in historical purchasing data and real-time user interaction data, to predict future purchases or interests. Using this platform, developers can build apps to add recommendations, analyse sentiment, predict churn, and create intelligent apps.

In January, Apple acquired Emotient, a startup that uses AI to track nineteen different basic muscle movements and is based around what the firm calls the seven expressions of primary emotion. This added to previous purchases of voice-centric AI startups VocalIQ and Perceptio. According to online publication GeekWire, following the latest acquisition, all Turi employees will remain in the Seattle area. In a standard statement, Apple said: 'Apple buys smaller technology companies from time to time, and we generally do not discuss our purpose or plans.'

Web sites: www.apple.com and www.turi.com .