SwiftKey acquired by Microsoft for $250 million

After acquiring various startups behind popular apps like Accompli and Sunrise Calendar, Microsoft is now acquiring SwiftKey, the developers of the popular keyboard with the same name for iOS and Android for $250 million. The company has not announced its acquisition yet, but the Financial Times report that a announcement from Microsoft is due for later this week.

Microsoft has previously acquired startups behind successful apps like Accompli, which was later renamed to Outlook, Sunrise Calendar, and more. Microsoft already has an excellent keyboard, Word Flow, that it is working on bringing to Android and iOS later this year, so it is surprising to see the company go ahead and acquire SwiftKey.

Swiftkey is the latest in a string of UK start-ups with advanced artificial-intelligence capabilities to be snapped up by the biggest names in Silicon Valley.
[…] A person close to the deal said: “There’s a war for talent in artificial intelligence — and companies like Google and Microsoft recognise the best talent is in the UK.”

Both Microsoft and SwiftKey have now gone ahead and made the acquisition official. Microsoft also confirmed that it plans on integrating SwiftKey’s technology with Word Flow in Windows.