What are Apple’s options for an AI acquisition beyond Perplexity?

Since Apple’s latest earnings call, talk of a potential Perplexity acquisition has quieted down (the fact that Perplexity was once again allegedly caught red-handed sidestepping content restrictions didn’t help).

Meanwhile, with the ever-increasing number of engineers from its Foundation Models team jumping ship, Apple’s need for fresh talent is getting more urgent by the day. But if Perplexity is a no-go, who else could Apple buy?

I used to agree with Jason Snell’s frequent…