The Shoe Company Allbirds Just Sold Its Brand and Rebranded as an AI Company. The Stock Is Up 700%
Summary:
- Allbirds announced it's selling its footwear brand to American Exchange Group and rebranding as NewBird AI, backed by a $50 million convertible financing deal.
- Shares surged more than 700% from under $3 to over $17, though the company was valued at just $21 million before the news.
- Allbirds went public in 2021 but saw sales fall nearly 50% between 2022 and 2025, dropping from $298 million to $152 million.
A shoe company is now an AI company, and the stock went up 700%. Allbirds - the sustainable sneaker brand that was once a tech-bro favorite - announced on Wednesday that it's selling its footwear business to American Exchange Group and reinventing itself as NewBird AI. The company said it secured a $50 million convertible financing deal to buy processing units and build AI compute infrastructure.
What Happened to the Shoes
Allbirds went public in 2021 during the boom in direct-to-consumer brands, but the business fell apart fast. Between 2022 and 2025, sales dropped nearly 50% - from $298 million to $152 million - as trends shifted, competitors moved in, and customer costs climbed. By Tuesday's close, the entire company was worth about $21 million.
The Pivot
Allbirds said it will use the $50 million to buy processing units and build AI infrastructure under the NewBird AI name, sending shares from under $3 to over $17 - a gain of more than 700%.
Worth Noting
A tiny company that sold sneakers just rebranded as an AI firm and watched its stock jump seven-fold in a single day. That tells you more about how the market prices anything with "AI" in the name than it does about Allbirds' future as a compute provider. The company hasn't turned a profit in years.
