OpenAI is on an acquisition spree. Last week, the estimated $90 billion company behind ChatGPT announced the acquisition of Rockset, a startup specializing in retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) technology that enables generative AI models to access specific data sources.
Today, sources close to OpenAI confirmed the acquisition of Multi, formerly known as Remotion, a five-person startup based in New York City. Multi focuses on screen-sharing and collaboration technologies for Mac users. This marks OpenAI's third publicly known acquisition to date, following its acquisition of Global Illumination, a web-based MMORPG developer, last year.
Details regarding the deal, including the purchase price and whether it was cash or stock-based, have not been disclosed. OpenAI has opted not to provide further comments about the acquisition or the role Multi’s team and technology will play within the organization.
In a notable update, Multi’s co-founder and CEO, Alexander Embiricos, announced on his X account that he and presumably the entire Multi team have joined OpenAI's "ChatGPT desktop team," which is responsible for developing the ChatGPT desktop app for Mac that was unveiled in May 2024.
Multi shared the news first with its users, stating in a blog post, “We’ve been increasingly asking ourselves how we should work with computers. Not just using computers, but truly collaborating with them. With AI. We believe this is one of the most important product questions of our time. And so, we’re beyond excited to share that Multi is joining OpenAI!”
Speculation among users on X suggests that OpenAI may utilize Multi's technology to enhance its AI models, such as GPT-4o, allowing them to perform tasks directly on a user’s computer based on text or voice commands. For instance, a user could say, “ChatGPT, create a spreadsheet of my latest hours and send it to my manager,” and the AI would attempt to complete the task.
From my understanding of Multi, it's likely that OpenAI intends to integrate this acquisition to enhance its ChatGPT Team and Enterprise subscription plans, which focus on improving team collaboration.
However, Multi announced it will “sunset” its current application within one month, ceasing support on July 24, 2024, and deleting all user data. Multi urges users to export their data by using the “Export Session Notes” feature at https://app.multi.app/account. Users who need an extension for their data deletion can contact Embiricos directly at [email protected]. Multi’s team is also available to recommend alternative solutions.
Originally founded as Remotion in 2019, Multi aimed to create a Zoom-like video conferencing and desktop screen-sharing application in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The startup raised $13 million in seed funding and Series A rounds from firms like Graylock and First Round.
Multi launched its initial application for macOS in October 2020, positioning itself as a flexible video conferencing alternative to platforms like Zoom and Microsoft Teams. The app featured a compact layout with contact status indicators for quick chats.
Last summer, the company rebranded to Multi and shifted its focus toward enhancing collaboration for technical teams, moving beyond a sole emphasis on remote work. As stated in a blog post, the goal was to build tools that facilitate collaboration across all team members, regardless of location.
The app was redesigned to support shared views among team members on their desktop applications, enabling collaborative interactions such as drawing and annotating shared documents. Multi later introduced an iOS beta app and added AI-driven summaries for shared work sessions and video calls.
Interestingly, Multi previously stated that “chatbots are not the future,” criticizing the limitations of existing LLM interfaces. Now, the entire Multi team is set to contribute to OpenAI and ChatGPT, potentially bringing their innovative vision to the desktop application.
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