Nike snaps up AI platform Celect

Nike has acquired US-based predictive analytics company Celect. Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.

With Celect’s technology integrated into Nike’s mobile apps and website, the company will look to better predict what styles of shoes and apparel customers want, when they want it and where they want to buy it from, Chief Operating Officer Eric Sprunk, told CNBC.

“Our goal is to serve consumers more personally at scale,” he said. “We have to anticipate demand. We don’t have six months to do it. We have 30 minutes.”

Celect, which was founded in 2013, will be integrated into Nike’s global operations team. The venture’s co-founders will continue working as tenured professors at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and will also consult with Nike on an ongoing basis as part of the deal.