Allbirds, the sustainable footwear company renowned for its minimalist wool sneakers, has undergone a significant transformation, rebranding itself as Smartbird and pivoting from its footwear roots to become an AI infrastructure provider. This strategic shift follows the sale of its shoe brand and assets to American Exchange Group for $39 million in March 2026 (and AI-native cloud solutions).
To lead this new direction, Smartbird appointed Nadia Carlsten as its president and CEO. Carlsten, formerly the CEO of the Danish Center for AI Innovation and an executive at Amazon Web Services' quantum computing division, brings extensive experience in AI infrastructure to the company.
The announcement of the pivot and leadership change led to a surge in Smartbird's stock price, which increased by 49% shortly after the news broke. The company also secured $100 million in convertible financing to acquire high-performance GPUs, aiming to provide dedicated AI compute capacity for enterprise clients.
This strategic move marks a bold departure from Allbirds' original business model, reflecting the company's adaptability and ambition to capitalize on the burgeoning AI market.