OpenAI said today it has bought a company called Software Applications Inc., which is building an artificial intelligence-based natural language interface for Apple Inc.’s Mac computers.
That tool is called Sky, and it has not yet been released, but the company’s website reveals that it’s meant to work as a kind of AI assistant. Similar to AI browsers, Sky can see Mac users’ screens as they browse the web and use various applications, and will take actions on their behalf as they go about writing, coding, planning and more.
Software Applications co-founder and Chief Executive Ari Weinstein said in a statement that his goal is to make computers more empowering and intuitive. “With LLMs, we can finally put the pieces together,” he said, referring to the large language models that power chatbots such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT. “That’s why we built Sky, an AI experience that floats over your desktop to help you think and create.”
The acquisition suggests that OpenAI wants to embed its technology into the lives of everyday consumers and employees that work with Mac computers. It said it’s planning to incorporate Sky’s deep macOS integration into ChatGPT itself, and will hire Software Applications’ entire team to help with that work.
The Sky app actually bears some resemblance to OpenAI’s new ChatGPT-powered web browser Atlas, which launched this week and is also built to run on Macs. The AI company may use the Sky team’s knowledge of the macOS platform to enable ChatGPT to work like an agent inside Macs, automating tasks on behalf of users.
Software Applications’ founding team has had a long association with Apple. Weinstein and his co-founder Conrad Kramer previously built up a company called Workflow Inc., which developed a technology that later became known as “Shortcuts” when it was acquired by the iPhone maker in 2017. The pair worked at Apple for a number of years before leaving to found Software Applications in 2023.
Another Sky co-founder is Chief Operating Officer Kim Beverett, who served as a product manager at Apple for almost 10 years, working on Safari, WebKit, Messages, Mail, FaceTime, Phone and SharePlay.
The acquisition could lead to Apple getting even closer to OpenAI. The iPhone maker is generally viewed as having been a bit slow to adopt AI in its products and devices, but is believed to be planning a major overhaul of its Siri assistant.
It has already shipped some AI features within its Apple Intelligence product suite, which enable iPhones to help users with their writing, perform live translations, generate images and so on. However, it’s thought Apple is working with OpenAI to integrate Siri with ChatGPT, so it can use that company’s chatbot to respond to queries that its assistant can’t handle.
OpenAI didn’t reveal the terms of the acquisition, but it’s unlikely to have been expensive. To date, Software Applications had raised just $6.5 million in funding from investors including OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Figma Inc. CEO Dylan Field, Context Ventures and Stellation Capital.
Image: OpenAI
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