SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- They say, if you can't beat them, join them. That may be why Allbirds, a struggling shoe company once beloved by tech bros, announced it would be pivoting to artificial intelligence. The San Francisco-based company had previously announced an agreement to sell its brand and f ootwear assets to American Exchange Group. However, on Wednesday, Allbirds said it would be pivoting its business to AI compute infrastructure with a long-term vision to become a fully integrated GPU-as-a-Service (GPUaaS) and AI-native cloud solutions provider. The once-hip shoe brand saw its stock value skyrocket on the news Wednesday, rising at one point more than 875%. Wednesday's pivot to AI followed news that the company, which was once valued at $4 billion, sold its brand assets and intellectual property for a mere $39 million just two weeks ago. Founded in 2015 by former professional soccer player Tim Brown, Allbirds became de rigueur footwear for tech and finance bros. Launched on a direct-to-consumer model, before launching a series of brick-and-mortar stores, Allbirds was once hailed as the "eco-friendly shoe company that won over Silicon Valley," by the Los Angeles Times. A pedestrian wearing a protective mask walks past an Allbirds Inc. store in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2021. The U.S. economy started 2021 with a bang as retail sales and factory output accelerated and expectations continue to build for another jolt of government stimulus, setting the stage for what could be the best year of economic growth in nearly four decades. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images However, strategic missteps saw the brand's value plunge to just 1% of its peak market value, culminating in the sale of its assets last month. In keeping with its pivot to a new business model, Allbirds also said it would be changing its name to "NewBird AI." ...read more read less