Apple’s Tim Cook hints at larger AI acquisitions

Whenever speculation arises about Apple making a significant acquisition to bolster its position in AI, the familiar argument emerges: ‘Apple does not acquire big companies like that’. Apple CEO Tim Cook has now offered his perspective, suggesting company size holds little importance.

During a recent Q3 2025 earnings call, Citi analyst Atif Malik questioned whether Apple needed to accelerate its AI roadmap, given its historical avoidance of major acquisitions. Cook confirmed Apple had acquired seven companies during the year, though not all were AI-focused.

Cook then added, ‘We are very open to M&A that accelerates our roadmap. We are not stuck on a certain size company. (…) We basically ask ourselves whether a company can help us accelerate a roadmap. If they do, then we are interested. But we do not have anything to share specifically today.’

Cook’s remarks followed about a month after Bloomberg reported Apple had held internal discussions regarding the acquisition of AI search startup Perplexity. Perplexity reportedly just completed a $1 billion funding round, valuing it at over $18 billion, which is a figure that pushes any potential sale price even higher.

An acquisition of Perplexity would not only make it Apple’s largest to date, significantly surpassing the $3 billion Beats deal, but it could arguably eclipse the combined value of every other acquisition Apple has ever made.

At the same time, Morgan Stanley recently published a report classifying as ‘misguided’ the notion that Apple needed to acquire an AI search startup. Cook’s comments, however, offer a different perspective and a potential pathway for companies that hope to break with Apple’s traditional approach.

For particular cases, if the technology aligns, Apple may indeed be willing to pay a price as substantial as its perceived shortcomings in the AI domain.

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