Edible Apple

Bloomberg is reporting that Apple has officially acknowledged that it acquired Anobit, an Israeli-based company specializing in flash memory.

The deal helps Apple secure supplies of a key component for its top-selling devices. Anobit makes high-performance controllers used to optimize the memory capabilities inside products such as the iPhone and iPad. Apple is the world’s largest buyer of NAND flash memory, accounting for about 23 percent of consumption last quarter, according to a Jan. 6 report from Sanford C. Bernstein & Co.

Steve Dowling, a spokesman for Cupertino, California-based Apple, said today that the purchase had been made, while declining to elaborate. The statement confirmed a December report from in the Israeli newspaper Cacalist.

Though only the size of New Jersey, Israel has carved out a nice niche for itself as an epicenter of innovative technology. Indeed, companies like Intel and Microsoft already have substantial research centers there.

Further, Bloomberg notes that Israel has about 60 companies listed on the Nasdaq, the most out of any country outside of North America and China. It also houses the most startups on a per capita basis than any other country in the world.

While terms of the deal remain secret, it’s estimated that Apple payed anywhere between 4 and $500 million for Anobit. As it stands now, Anobit already supplies memory controller technology for the iPhone and iPad.