Overview

• The Information reported that Apple has internally discussed potential acquisitions of Perplexity and France-based Mistral, with no confirmed bids or agreements.
• Reuters said it could not verify the report, and Apple, Mistral and Perplexity did not respond to requests for comment.
• With regulatory uncertainty around Apple’s Google Search default, the company is exploring ways to accelerate AI, and Tim Cook has recently signaled openness to larger takeovers.
• Services chief Eddy Cue is portrayed as the leading advocate for big AI buys, while software head Craig Federighi is described as favoring in-house development.
• Apple has told bankers it is prioritizing smaller AI deals for now, as Mistral’s valuation exceeds $6 billion with talks reported near $10 billion and Perplexity positions itself as a cited, conversational search engine.