Apple chasing AI chip company deals, The Information reports

July 15 (Reuters) - Apple is ‌looking to ​buy ​chip companies to bolster its efforts to make server processors for running AI, The Information reported on Wednesday, ‌citing people familiar with the matter.

Here are some details:

• ⁠The iPhone maker has approached chip startups to gauge their interest in a ‌buyout and has spoken ‌with bankers about possible deals, the report said.

• Apple's interest comes as it faces challenges with the performance of its ​in-house AI servers, which currently run on internally designed M2 Ultra chips, according to The Information.

• It had originally planned ⁠to ship a future version of its AI server chip, known internally as "Baltra", this ​year, but the project has been pushed back, people familiar with the matter told The Information.

• Apple did ​not immediately respond to a request ‌for comment. Reuters could not independently verify the report.

• Earlier this year, Apple tried running Google's ⁠Gemini models on its internal servers as part of a Siri overhaul, but the Mac-based chips could not handle the large model, forcing ⁠the company to run parts of the revamped assistant on Nvidia chips in ​Google's cloud infrastructure, the report said.

• Apple has historically avoided large acquisitions, last making a deal in January for Q.ai, an Israeli company working on ‌AI technology for audio.

• The company had $45.57 billion in cash and cash equivalents as of March ‌28, the end of its second quarter.

• Last week, Apple said ⁠it plans to spend ‌over $30 billion under a ​multi-year chip supply deal with Broadcom, bolstering its domestic sourcing.

(Reporting by Anhata Rooprai in Bengaluru; Editing by ‌Sriraj Kalluvila)

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