Apple agrees to acquire talent and tech from Huxe, a personalized podcast startup

Apple has entered into a reverse acqui-hire agreement with Huxe, a personalized audio startup, according to a regulatory filing. The deal involves hiring key team members and licensing Huxe’s intellectual property without acquiring the company outright. Huxe, founded by former NotebookLM developers, shut down on May 21, 2026, after announcing it would stop development and delete user data. Apple notified the European Commission of the deal on June 9, 2026. The filing does not specify which employees received offers or if they accepted. Huxe’s shutdown followed Spotify’s announcement of AI-powered podcast features, suggesting Apple may be enhancing its Podcasts app with similar capabilities. The company thanked users for their support in its final message.