Apple strikes talent and IP deal with virtual avatar startup Animato

Apple strikes talent and IP deal with virtual avatar startup Animato - 9to5Mac

Apple has struck a new talent and IP deal with Animato, a startup that makes virtual avatar software for video chats and tutoring. Here are the details. According to a new listing in the European Commission's Digital Markets Act acquisition database, Apple has struck a deal with Animato, a virtual avatar company best known for Call Annie, a now-discontinued app that offered video calls with AI tutors for language learning. Under the terms of the deal, Apple will have the right to hire certain Animato employees, receive a non-exclusive license to Animato's intellectual property rights, and acquire its patent applications. From the DMA's List of Acquisitions: Apple Inc. ("Apple") will have the right to make employment offers to and hire certain employees of Animato, Inc. ("Animato"), receive a non-exclusive license to Animato's intellectual property rights, and acquire Animato's patent applications. Animato develops and distributes software that creates virtual avatars for video chats and tutoring. Apple (together with its group companies) designs, manufactures and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables and accessories, and sells a variety of related services. In essence, this means that Apple is getting access to Animato's talent and technology without buying the startup outright, a deal structure has become increasingly common in tech, particularly around AI startups, as regulators pay closer attention to full-on acquisitions. In Apple's case, based on the DMA's List of Acquisitions, the Animato deal is the latest in a series of IP licensing and acqui-hire-style transactions disclosed by Apple. It follows similar disclosed arrangements with PromptAI, WhyLabs, Mayday Labs, and TrueMeeting, the latter of which was also focused on digital avatar technology.

Apple Taps Virtual Avatar Firm Animato's Expertise and Intellectual Property

Apple has quietly agreed to hire employees and license intellectual property of Animato, a small California-based company that has developed software for creating virtual avatars used in video chats and tutoring, according to a European Commission filing spotted by MacRumors. The acquisition was filed under the EU's Digital Markets Act in January 2026, and appears to be what's known as a "structured acqui-hire." In other words, Apple is able to make employment offers to certain Animato employees and receive a non-exclusive license to the company's intellectual property, as well as acquire its patent applications. Apple Inc. ("Apple") will have the right to make employment offers to and hire certain employees of Animato, Inc. ("Animato"), receive a non-exclusive license to Animato's intellectual property rights, and acquire Animato's patent applications. Animato develops and distributes software that creates virtual avatars for video chats and tutoring. Animato was founded in October 2022 by Francesco Rossi, who previously spent seven years at Apple before leaving to start the company. Animato is best known for a free app called "Call Annie," which launched in April 2023, and gave ChatGPT a real-time animated avatar face, allowing users to have video-style conversations with the AI chatbot. The app later moved into language learning by offering avatar tutors for practicing English, Spanish, French, German, Japanese, Mandarin, and Korean through video conversations. Animato also came out with a macOS virtual camera app called Animato Studio that let users make themselves appear as fantasy figures and anime avatars during video calls and live streams. Both App Store listings have since been removed following the acquisition, and the Call Annie website says the app has been discontinued. It's Apple's second acquisition of a digital avatar company in just over a year. In January 2025, Apple acquired technology, IP, and physical assets from TrueMeeting, a company specializing in the development of digital avatar technology for meetings. Apple already offers avatar-style technology with Memoji on iPhone and its Personas feature on Apple Vision Pro, the latter of which generates a realistic digital representation of the user for FaceTime calls.