Dover, DE, Sept. 21, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Metatron Inc. (OTC Pink: MRNJ), a mobile and web technology pioneer having developed over 2,000 apps on iTunes and Google Play, is pleased to announce that the Company has signed final agreement paperwork with Geek Labs Limited to complete Metatron's first acquisition of artificial intelligence technology. The acquisition was successfully negotiated by the two parties over the course of this past week. The acquisition will be a non-dilutive cash purchase and comes with immediate revenue-generating potential for Metatron. Furthermore, this technology acquisition is a wholly owned asset within the quickly growing $450 billion AI industry and can immediately be added to Metatron's corporate bottom line. CEO Joe Riehl commented: "One week ago we formally announced the formation of Metatron's Artificial Intelligence Division. Today we are announcing that we've inked a deal to complete our first AI tech acquisition. I want to send a crystal-clear message to our valued stakeholders that Metatron is entering a new chapter and taking fast steps to add impressive value for our investors. We already have our eye on a second acquisition and talks with the seller are at the midway point. Furthermore, our new AI division has begun planning projects with talented developers operating within the AI sector to build proprietary Metatron AI technology for use in specialty applications. Our new AI division also has begun performing due diligence on strategic AI patents that our team believes could be used in developing new technology and/or holding big tech companies accountable as more and more AI applications come into use."

Artificial intelligence (AI) helps automate repetitive tasks comprising large datasets. This makes it beneficial in many diverse fields and business environments. This has led the demand for such solutions to rise. It's also driving AI acquisitions as businesses attempt to streamline their workflows. In this article, you'll learn about the 8 biggest AI acquisitions from 2021.

When SAP veteran Bill McDermott took over the CEO spot at digital workflow company ServiceNow in October, his mandate focused on growth. "Should we choose to do'tuck-ins' to compliment what our customers need, to get us somewhere faster, we'll do that very carefully," he told CNBC. ServiceNow kicked off 2020 with one such "tuck-in": the acquisition of Israeli company Loom Systems, an AIOps company that uses artificial intelligence to give enterprise users insights into digital operations and fix IT issues. The acquisition symbolizes a bigger trend in enterprise technology: Acquiring AI startups enables technology vendors to capitalize, enhance or expand their capabilities while bringing scarce talent aboard. Last year, consolidation in the AI market hit record numbers.

The AI talent grab is real. This year alone, Pinterest CTO Vanja Josifovski jumped ship to Airbnb, while Pinterest hired Walmart CTO Jeremy King to head up its engineering team. Moreover, all the big tech companies, including Google and Apple, have for some time been vacuuming up AI talent through acquisitions -- a recent CB Insights report noted 635 AI acquisitions since 2010, topped by Apple with 20 acquisitions. Elsewhere, Microsoft turned to online education platforms to help train a new generation of AI students. But while the AI talent pool may be growing, a significant shortage remains.

Rumors are rife that Intel is in talks to acquire Israeli AI accelerator startup Habana Labs. Intel is reportedly considering a purchase price of ranging anywhere from $1 billion to $2 billion, according to the Israeli publication Calcalist, who broke the story earlier this week. If it's true, it would be a surprising move, given that Habana competes with Intel acquisition Nervana. Nervana, based in San Diego, was purchased by Intel back in August of 2016 for a sum believed to be around $400 million. Intel acquired another AI chip startup, Movidius, the following month (Movidius' product line is aimed at computer vision in edge devices).

In an AI industry marked by consolidation, a handful of companies are scooping up the lion's share of leading startups. According to a report from analyst firm CB Insights, AI acquisitions rose six-fold from 2013 to 2018. Last year, acquisitions in that market hit a record 166 deals -- a 38% year-over-year spike. The firm's projections say 2019 is on track to sprint past last year, with over 140 acquisitions in the first eight months. Since 2010, there have been 635 AI acquisitions.

FILE - In this March 14, 2019, file photo Tesla CEO Elon Musk speaks before unveiling the Model Y at Tesla's design studio in Hawthorne, Calif. Musk says in an internal memo that Tesla has enough orders to set a record, but it's having trouble This week Tesla acquired DeepScale, which is a startup that focuses on developing computer vision technologies (the price of the deal was not disclosed). This appears to be a part of the company's focus on building an Uber-like service as well building fully autonomous vehicles. Founded in 2015, DeepScale has raised $15 million from investors like Point72, next47, Andy Bechtolsheim, Ali Partovi, and Jerry Yang. The founders include Forrest Iandola and Kurt Keutzer, who are both PhD's.

Millions of dollars in venture capital or acquisition costs come at a price: Executives need artificial intelligence to begin delivering on its promises of increased worker efficiency and product innovation. But if checks are signed too quickly, companies may not find the ROI they would expect waiting for them at the end of the process. PwC analysts recommend AI technologies must first be evaluated by a diverse team of experts who can attest to the technical backbone of the company, asses if the needed data sources can be improved over time, and determine if AI systems can applied to a company's unique business model. "Moreover, integration plans should consider responsible AI principles and practices to extract a deal's value well after it closes," the report states. A laser-tight focus on business objectives can help maximize ROI for companies when it comes to AI initiatives.

If you haven't heard, artificial intelligence (AI) startups are sort of a big deal. It's a tech category that has left the halls of academia in favor of entrepreneurs' innovative embrace. In turn, those entrepreneurs are holding their hands out to investors who have shown an increasing willingness to invest. Whether the current cohort of AI startups find market traction, and, eventually, the exits their backers anticipate, is an open question. Of course, for AI startups being funded, there are two paths to exit for founders and their investors: going public or being acquired.

Tech giants including Baidu and Google spent between $20B to $30B on AI in 2016, with 90% of this spent on R&D and deployment, and 10% on AI acquisitions. Artificial Intelligence (AI) investment has turned into a race for patents and intellectual property (IP) among the world's leading tech companies. U.S.-based companies absorbed 66% of all AI investments in 2016. China was second with 17% and growing fast. By providing better search results, Netflix estimates that it is avoiding canceled subscriptions that would reduce its revenue by $1B annually.