--- title: "Apple: what they buy and what they pay" url: https://www.brightinfo.com/buyers/apple/ site: https://www.brightinfo.com/ description: "What Apple buys, what it pays and its deal terms, from public sources with a link for every fact. Last verified November 3, 2026." last_updated: 2026-11-03 --- # Apple: what they buy and what they pay Buyers › AI labs › Apple Apple is profiled here as an AI lab [1]. Data types cited in this profile include: Publisher content [1]. Last verified November 3, 2026 ## Quick facts | Fact | Value | |---|---| | Type | AI lab [1] | | Status | Active (reported) [2] | | Website | https://www.apple.com/ [3] | | HQ | Cupertino, California, USA [3] | | Founded | 1977 [4] | | Ownership | Not published | | Program | Not published | | Price | At least $50 million, multiyear (offers to news publishers, reported Dec 2023) [5] · Possible nine-figure budget discussed for payments to publishers when their content is used (proposed Siri AI deals, reported Aug 2026) [2] | | Pricing basis | Variable compensation paid when publisher content is used (proposed Siri news deals, reported) [2] | | Payment timing | Not published | | How to start | Not published | ## What they buy - **Data types:** Publisher content [1] · Images [1] · Images (reported) [6] - **Excluded:** Not published - **Intended use:** Training (continued and context-lengthening stages of pre-training) [7] · Siri AI access to current events and information (multiyear deals sought, reported) [2] ## Price and payment - **Price:** At least $50 million, multiyear (offers to news publishers, reported Dec 2023) [5] · Possible nine-figure budget discussed for payments to publishers when their content is used (proposed Siri AI deals, reported Aug 2026) [2] - **Pricing basis:** Variable compensation paid when publisher content is used (proposed Siri news deals, reported) [2] - **Payment timing:** Not published - **Seller fees:** Not published - **Platform's cut:** Not published - **Referral bounty:** Not published ## Deal terms - **Deal structure:** Content license (multiyear licenses of news archives proposed) (reported) [5] - **Exclusivity:** Not published - **Term:** Multiyear (proposed) (reported) [2] - **Field of use:** Not published - **Onward transfer:** Not published - **Seller keeps ownership:** Not published ## Privacy and data handling - **De-identification:** Not published - **Raw data deletion:** Not published - **Certifications:** Not published - **Personal data handling:** Apple says it takes steps to apply filters to remove certain categories of personally identifiable information from its training data [1] ## Track record ### Named deals - Shutterstock — license of millions of images (reported by Reuters via 9to5Mac; said to have been signed in the months after ChatGPT's late-2022 release) [6] ### Coverage - 9to5Mac (relaying Reuters), Apr 2024: Apple licensed millions of Shutterstock images (reported) [6] - Reuters (relaying NYT), Dec 2023: Apple approached Condé Nast, NBC News and IAC about licensing news archives (reported) [5] - 9to5Mac (relaying WSJ), Aug 2026: Apple reaching out to publishers for multiyear deals giving Siri AI access to current events and information (reported) [2] ## Watch for - Lawsuit: proposed class action by authors Grady Hendrix and Jennifer Roberson, filed in Northern California, targeting Apple's OpenELM models and accusing Apple of using the Books3 dataset of pirated books (Publishers Weekly, Sep 8, 2025) (reported) [8] - Lawsuit: class action complaint filed October 9 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California by Susana Martinez-Conde and Stephen Macknik, alleging Apple used pirated books to train its AI systems, including Apple Intelligence, OpenELM and Foundation Models (IPWatchdog, Oct 14, 2025) (reported) [9] ## Sources 1. Updates to Apple’s On-Device and Server Foundation Language Models - Apple Machine Learning Research, machinelearning.apple.com. Published June 9, 2025. Accessed October 30 and November 3, 2026. (company's own site) https://machinelearning.apple.com/research/apple-foundation-models-2025-updates 2. Report: Apple seeks publisher deals to give Siri AI better access to current events - 9to5Mac, 9to5mac.com. Published August 12, 2026. Accessed October 30 and November 3, 2026. (press) https://9to5mac.com/2026/08/12/report-apple-seeks-publisher-deals-to-give-siri-ai-better-access-to-current-events/ 3. Apple Inc. Form 10-K for fiscal year ended September 27, 2025, sec.gov. Accessed October 30, 2026. (filing) https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/320193/000032019325000079/aapl-20250927.htm 4. Apple Inc. Form 10-K for fiscal year 2018, sec.gov. Accessed October 30, 2026. (filing) https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/320193/000032019318000145/a10-k20189292018.htm 5. Apple explores AI deals with news publishers (Reuters, via DT Next), dtnext.in. Published December 23, 2023. Accessed October 30 and November 3, 2026. (press) https://www.dtnext.in/lifestyle/technology/apple-explores-ai-deals-with-news-publishers-756231 6. Apple struck deal with Shutterstock to license millions of images for AI training - 9to5Mac, 9to5mac.com. Published April 6, 2024. Accessed October 30, 2026. (press) https://9to5mac.com/2024/04/06/apple-ai-deal-shutterstock/ 7. Apple Intelligence Foundation Language Models (arXiv:2407.21075v1), arxiv.org. Published July 29, 2024. Accessed November 3, 2026. (company publication) https://arxiv.org/html/2407.21075v1 8. Apple Sued by Authors for Copyright Infringement - Publishers Weekly, publishersweekly.com. Published September 8, 2025. Accessed November 3, 2026. (press) https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/20250915/98546-apple-sued-by-authors-for-copyright-infringement.html 9. Authors Take Page from Anthropic in Alleging Apple Infringed Works by Training AI on Pirated Books - IPWatchdog, ipwatchdog.com. Published October 14, 2025. Accessed November 3, 2026. (press) https://ipwatchdog.com/2025/10/14/authors-take-page-anthropic-alleging-apple-infringed-works-training-ai-pirated-books/ Last verified November 3, 2026 **Disclosure.** Bright Info is a sell-side broker. We may invite Apple to bid for a client's data. This profile is compiled from public sources; it is not endorsed by or affiliated with Apple. Corrections: hello@brightinfo.com. ## Related - All AI labs: https://www.brightinfo.com/buyers/ai-labs/ - Google: https://www.brightinfo.com/buyers/google/ - Meta: https://www.brightinfo.com/buyers/meta/ - Microsoft: https://www.brightinfo.com/buyers/microsoft/ - All buyer profiles: https://www.brightinfo.com/buyers/ --- © 2026 Bright Info · https://www.brightinfo.com