Apple Acquires Image Editing Tool Developer Pixelmator, Strengthening iOS Photo Editing Capabilities

Apple Acquires Image Editing Tool Developer Pixelmator, Strengthening iOS Photo Editing CapabilitiesOn Friday, November 1st, the team behind Pixelmator, a photo editing tool developer, announced on their website that they had signed an agreement to be acquired by American tech giant Apple. The news has sparked widespread attention, as Pixelmator has been renowned for its exceptional image editing applications, garnering widespread praise for its products on both Mac and iOS platforms

Apple Acquires Image Editing Tool Developer Pixelmator, Strengthening iOS Photo Editing Capabilities

On Friday, November 1st, the team behind Pixelmator, a photo editing tool developer, announced on their website that they had signed an agreement to be acquired by American tech giant Apple. The news has sparked widespread attention, as Pixelmator has been renowned for its exceptional image editing applications, garnering widespread praise for its products on both Mac and iOS platforms.

Founded in 2007 in Lithuania by brothers Saulius Dailide and Aidas Dailide, Pixelmator has focused on developing image editing applications for Mac and iOS. Notably, Pixelmator was one of the first Lithuanian tech companies to achieve success without external investment. Its team has consistently adhered to Apple's design philosophy, achieving significant accomplishments in product design, ease of use, and performance.

In their press release, Pixelmator stated that joining Apple would enable them to reach a wider audience and have a greater impact on the lives of creative individuals worldwide. This sentiment was echoed by Apple. On the Apple website, it was written that the Pixelmator team demonstrated exceptional talent in product design and user experience, and their addition would further enhance the image editing capabilities on Apple devices.

In fact, Apple has mentioned the Pixelmator team multiple times in its product launches over the past few years. As early as 2018, Pixelmator Pro was awarded "Mac App of the Year," and last year, Photomator was once again bestowed with the title of "Mac App of the Year." Apple praised Photomator as an application that combines a professional-grade photo editing experience with ease of use, its AI-powered tools bringing a surprising transformation to photos, comparable to the work of seasoned professionals.

This acquisition also underscores Apple's increasing investment in the field of photo editing. In recent years, Apple has continuously enhanced the photo editing capabilities within its iOS system, and the addition of the Pixelmator team will undoubtedly further enhance its competitiveness in this area. The new version of Pixelmator features numerous AI-powered tools, such as automatic object selection, sky and background replacement, increased image resolution, removal of color banding, increased color depth, and the ability to "remove unwanted objects." These features share striking similarities with the "CleanUp" function introduced earlier this year in Apple Intelligence.

Analysts believe that Apple's decision to acquire the Pixelmator team could potentially integrate some of their photo editing features into default applications like iOS. Previously, Apple acquired the weather app DarkSky and incorporated many of its features into the pre-installed weather app on devices. In 2017, Apple acquired Workflow and transformed it into the "Shortcuts" application the following year. These examples demonstrate Apple's tendency to acquire smaller companies with established products and exceptional teams to help build the features they need.

It is worth noting that the Pixelmator team's willingness to be acquired by Apple also reflects a significant issue faced by Europe. Previously, European Central Bank Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel mentioned that due to their inability to benefit from the development of digital technologies such as cloud computing and software, the Eurozone's productivity has been significantly weaker than that of the United States. Schnabel believes that many European companies are too small and subject to regulatory constraints, limiting their ability to fully utilize new technologies. A study by the American consulting firm McKinsey & Company also indicated that the noticeable innovation gap between the United States and the European Union continues to widen. International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva once described Europe as more like a "creative marketplace" for the United States, where Europe invents many things, but ultimately, the United States realizes their commercial viability and scales them up.

The addition of Pixelmator will inject new vitality into Apple's image editing domain and further enhance the photo editing capabilities of iOS. In the future, we look forward to witnessing Apple collaborate with the Pixelmator team to develop even more powerful and user-friendly image editing tools, delivering an unparalleled experience for users.