Look for Shopify to make a splash in artificial intelligence, says Industrial Alliance - Cantech Letter

On Wednesday, Shopify announced it had closed a (U.S.) $500-million share offering. The company said the proceeds would be used to strengthen its balance sheet or support growth. Abernethy says he thinks this cash will be used for acquisitions. "We see this financing as providing Shopify with greatly increased flexibility to pursue its expanding range of growth opportunities both organically and, potentially, through acquisitions," he says. "In terms of acquisitions, we believe Shopify could accelerate its product roadmap through the acquisition of emerging technologies, particularly in the artificial intelligence (AI) space. We also see opportunities for Shopify to broaden its offering through the acquisition of growth platforms in adjacent markets, such as accounting software (for example, private companies such as Wave or Freshbooks with millions of small business users could be of interest), marketing automation solutions, and logistics for small businesses."