Skip Navigation Markets Business Investing Tech Politics Video Watchlist Investing Club PRO Livestream Menu Key Points Allbirds on Wednesday rebranded to Smartbird and announced Nadia Carlsten as its new CEO. In April, the company changed its name to NewBird AI and shifted from making shoes to Ai compute infrastructure. Social media platform provider Myseum also recently pivoted to AI. In this article AMZN BIRD Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNT Sign on facade at shoe company Allbirds, Walnut Creek, California, August 25, 2025. Smith Collection | Archive Photos | Getty Images Two months after its unexpected artificial intelligence rebrand, Allbirds is changing its name to Smartbird and appointing a new chief executive. The shoemaker-turned- AI infrastructure firm on Wednesday named Nadia Carlsten as CEO and board member, replacing current CEO Joe Vernachio. Carlsten previously led Amazon Web Services' quantum computing center and worked at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security . Most recently, she was CEO at DCAI , an AI infrastructure company that recently partnered with Nvidia and is home to a supercomputer known as Gefion. Shares of BIRD soared 39% on Wednesday. Allbirds surprised investors in April with plans to shift from making shoes to AI compute infrastructure and hardware. At the time, the company rebranded to NewBird AI and its market cap surged sevenfold. A month earlier, the company sold its footwear assets to the brand management company American Exchange Group for $39 million. Allbirds also shuttered its U.S. full-priced stores in February. Read more CNBC tech news Godfather of AI blasts Musk's xAI as 'failure,' says labs are risking a 'big bubble explosion' Google Gemini co-lead Noam Shazeer leaves for OpenAI SpaceX adds longtime Elon Musk ally Roelof Botha to board Allbirds continues AI pivot with name change and CEO hire, sending stock soaring Allbirds is among the latest crop of companies pivoting to AI in a bid to capitalize on the burgeoning tech boom set off by ChatGPT's debut in late 2022. A day after Allbirds' rebrand, social media platform provider Myseum shifted to AI. Refocusing efforts on new tech trends isn't a new phenomenon on Wall Street. Several companies announced their own cryptocurrencies or pivoted to blockchain during the height of crypto mania. AI infrastructure company CoreWeave , which went public last year, started in crypto mining before a successful pivot to AI . Former professional soccer player Tim Brown and renewable resources expert Joey Zwillinger founded Allbirds in 2015, seeking to build sustainable shoes from natural materials. The company launched its debut shoe a year later and quickly transformed into a household name . In 2021, Allbirds went public on the Nasdaq surging 90% in its market debut. The company also rapidly expanded its brick-and-mortar footprint. Over the years, shares have slumped nearly 99% from a November 2021 high of $577.80 due to mounting competition and slowing trends. watch now VIDEO 4:28 04:28 Allbirds shares spike after shoe retailer announces pivot to AI Squawk Box Europe BIRD stock year-to-date stock chart. Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news. SpaceX makes bond sale days after record IPO, discloses over $100 billion cash pile Samantha Subin 15 min ago AI buildout gives tech investors new reasons to watch bond market Kate Rooney Amazon has lagged OpenAI and Anthropic, but AI chief sees path to catch up in 'coming year' Arjun Kharpal Read More