Apple buys Pixelmator, the photo editing app that worries Photoshop

Apple recently signed a deal to acquire Pixelmator, the photo editing application that has gained a large user base on Mac and iOS devices. The announcement, published on the official Pixelmator blog, highlights how the acquisition will allow it to reach a broader audience, offering significant opportunities to influence the creative world on a global scale. Pixelmator, founded in Lithuania, is now considered a cheap alternative to more expensive software like Adobe Photoshop, offering advanced tools for image editing and retouching, design and illustration. The app is available for a one-off payment of 23.99 euros on Mac (while it includes in-app purchases on iOS and iPadOS) and includes advanced features such as image retouching, drawing creation and masking management via artificial intelligence . The latest update to the application introduced an overhaul of the masking process and an AI function to remove backgrounds from images, making Pixelmator increasingly competitive in the industry.

Despite the acquisition, Pixelmator said there are no immediate changes planned for its applications: Pixelmator Pro, Pixelmator for iOS and Photomator. However, the deal remains subject to regulatory approval, a step that could prove complex. Other large deals in the tech sector have faced similar obstacles: recent cases include the failure of Nvidia’s acquisitions of Arm and Amazon’s iRobot, or Adobe’s Figma, while Microsoft managed to complete the acquisition of Activision Blizzard despite stiff regulatory scrutiny. The acquisition adds to Apple’s string of strategic acquisitions in recent years. Previously, the Cupertino company had acquired applications such as Dark Sky, the weather app that was later integrated into Apple’s native Weather app. Other applications, such as Final Cut and Logic Pro, acquired many years ago, have remained independent and continue to be updated, indicating that Apple may opt for a similar strategy with Pixelmator.