Tile is selling its tracking business just 6 months after AirTag’s arrival

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Tile bluetooth tracker
Life360 will pay $205 million.
Photo: Ste Smith/Cult of Mac

Tile, the company famous for its Bluetooth tracking gadgets, is selling itself to Life360 for $205 million. The move comes just six months after Tile was forced to face its toughest competition yet — Apple’s popular AirTag.

Life360, which offers a family safety service, said the Tile acquisition will allow it to “provide a unique and all-encompassing solution for finding the people, pets and things.” The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2022.

Tile will become a part of Life360

Tile launched back in 2013 after it raised $2.6 million from a successful crowdfunding campaign. At the time, Bluetooth tracking devices were in their infancy, and Tile was one of the first to offer simple, affordable tracing tags.

Eight years on, Tile now faces competition from much bigger brands like Apple and Samsung. And Cupertino’s AirTag, which costs just $29, works much more seamlessly alongside its own hardware and its Find My ecosystem.

It’s not clear how much of an impact AirTag has had on Tile since its arrival back in April, but it does believe that with the backing of Life360, it can be much more competitive. It’s also going to mean big improvements for Life360.

A great day for Tile customers

“This is a great day for Tile, our customers, and our employees,” said Tile CEO CJ Prober, who will retain his position. “This acquisition not only brings together two incredible teams with complementary missions and values, it paves the way for us to jointly build the world’s leading solutions for peace of mind and safety.”

“Life360 is on a mission to simplify safety so families can live fully. With the acquisition of Tile, we will now be able to provide a unique and all-encompassing solution for finding the people, pets and things that families care about most,” said Chris Hulls, co-founder and CEO of Life360.

Tile will continue to operate with its own identity under Life360, and the Tile team are expected to remain in place. So, if you’re a Tile user, you probably won’t see major changes — at least initially.

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