Allbirds Inc. rebranded as Smartbird and pivoted from sustainable footwear to an artificial-intelligence infrastructure business on Wednesday [1].

This transition represents a total departure from the company's original identity as a sustainable apparel brand. By shifting to AI infrastructure, the company aims to capitalize on the rapid growth of the artificial intelligence market [1, 2].

As part of the strategic overhaul, the company appointed Nadia Carlsten as CEO [1]. Carlsten is a former Amazon executive with experience at Amazon Web Services [1].

The rebranding announcement occurred on June 17, 2026 [1]. While the company is currently headquartered in San Francisco, the new leadership is considering a move to better align with the tech industry's core hubs [3].

Carlsten said she plans to look in Palo Alto and Silicon Valley for a new headquarters [3]. This potential move would place the company's operations closer to the center of the AI development ecosystem.

Industry reports on the new name vary slightly, though the majority of sources identify the entity as Smartbird [1, 2]. The shift marks one of the most drastic pivots for a consumer brand in recent years, moving from physical retail goods to digital infrastructure services [2].

“Allbirds Inc. has rebranded as Smartbird and pivoted from sustainable footwear to an artificial-intelligence infrastructure business.”

The move signals a desperate or opportunistic attempt to escape the volatility of the retail footwear market by entering the high-valuation AI sector. By hiring a former AWS executive and eyeing a move to Palo Alto, Smartbird is attempting to trade its reputation for sustainability for a reputation in enterprise cloud and AI services.