Allbirds, the footwear company that went public in 2021, formally completes its planned turnaround by renaming itself Smartbird Inc. Multiple outlets report that the company stops selling its shoes and finalizes the divestiture of its sneaker assets as part of its shift away from apparel and toward AI-related infrastructure. The company also appoints a new chief executive, Nadia Carlsten, described by several sources as a former executive at AWS or leadership with experience in AI and cloud infrastructure. The rebrand follows an April announcement outlining the company’s pivot into providing AI compute or AI infrastructure services. After the announcement became official, outlets including The Next Web and Forbes report that Smartbird’s shares surge significantly in early trading, though some coverage notes the stock gains later ease. Quartz adds that Smartbird expands convertible financing to $100 million and says it is in active discussions with potential AI infrastructure customers. Across reports, the common thread is a corporate reorientation from sustainable sneakers to a software/compute-focused AI infrastructure business, accompanied by a new corporate identity and leadership.
Allbirds rebrands as Smartbird, sells shoes, and pivots to AI infrastructure
Allbirds, the footwear company that went public in 2021, formally completes its planned turnaround by renaming itself Smartbird Inc. Multiple outlets report that the company stops selling its shoes an...
- Allbirds changes its corporate name to Smartbird Inc.
- The company stops selling shoes and finalizes the divestiture of its sneaker assets.
- Smartbird appoints Nadia Carlsten as its new chief executive, with prior experience connected to AWS and AI/cloud infrastructure.
- The company frames its pivot as moving into AI compute or AI infrastructure services.
- Smartbird expands convertible financing to $100 million and says it is discussing potential AI infrastructure customers.
From shoes to AI to . . . Smartbird? It’s been a strange, winding path to an entirely new strategy for the company formerly known as Allbirds. On Wednesday, the company made two big announcements: It has named a new CEO, Nadia Carlsten, and it changed its name from Allbirds to Smartbird. It’s also identifying itself as “an AI infrastructure provider,” which, again, is a huge change from its previous iteration as a footwear maker. Carlsten will also join the company’s board and replace current CEO Joe Vernachio, who had taken the helm of the company in March 2024. She was previously leading Amazon Web Services’ quantum computing center, and was CEO at AI company DCAI. The news was evidently welcomed by the markets, as shares took flight after the announcement—BIRD stock was up roughly 45% midday Wednesday, and was up 37% at the time of market close Wednesday. (However, the stock is still down 50% over the past year.) In addition to a pivot to AI from the footwear industry, Smartbird had previously sold off its footwear-related assets for almost $40 million. In all, it’s been an incredible turn of events for the company, which was, at one time, valued at $4 billion—today, its market cap is around $50 million. Perhaps that’s why it makes some sense that Smartbird is trying to get in on the AI gold rush—and its new CEO says that she sees an opportunity to do so. “Smartbird is entering the market at a pivotal moment in the evolution of AI infrastructure,” said Carlsten, in a statement. “There is a clear opportunity to meet the growing need for enterprise-grade AI infrastructure that delivers control and performance without the capital and operational burden of hardware ownership. With a differentiated strategy, significant capital, and the opportunity to build an exceptional team, we are uniquely positioned to capitalize on one of the most significant infrastructure opportunities of the next decade.”
10 hours agoAllbirds, the sustainable footwear company that went public at a $4.1 billion valuation in 2021, has officially renamed itself Smartbird and appointed a new chief executive to lead its pivot into AI compute. Shares surged more than 50% on Wednesday morning before pulling back. The rebrand completes a transformation first announced in April, when the company […] This story continues at The Next Web
11 hours agoShoe company turned AI company Allbirds is changing its name and named a new CEO.
11 hours agoNew CEO Nadia Carlsten said "in a few months, people won't even remember the shoes."
12 hours agoAllbirds, meet Smartbird: The shoe brand has completed its AI pivot, rebranding while hiring a new president and CEO to lead the charge.
13 hours ago
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