How Google Killed OpenAI's $3 Billion Deal Without an Acquisition
Google announced on July 11 that it poached key talent from the rapidly rising AI startup Windsurf, which until then had a reported $3 billion acquisition deal with OpenAI that has now collapsed. Instead, Google is paying $2.4 billion to hire away top Windsurf employees, including the company's CEO, and take a non-exclusive license to its technology, according to Bloomberg.
By poaching Windsurf's top brains but not acquiring the startup itself, Google achieved two critical goals at once: it nullified OpenAI's momentum and gained access to the startup's valuable AI technology.
Friday's announcement is only the latest instance of what is increasingly becoming the go-to tactic for big tech companies looking to grow their competitive edge. Tech analysts have described it as a 'non-acquisition acquisition,' or more simply, an 'acqui-hire.'
OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, ignited the current AI frenzy back in 2022 and has been the leader in generative AI ever since. But its market lead is being increasingly challenged by big tech competitors like Google and Meta, and it is now clearer than ever that elite AI engineers are the most valuable currency in this fight for dominance.
Recently, OpenAI has found itself a primary target. After a series of high-profile talent raids by Meta, OpenAI executives described the feeling as though 'someone has broken into our home and stolen something,' in an internal memo obtained by WIRED.
The biggest aggressor in this new era of 'the poaching wars' has been Meta. In April 2025, CEO Mark Zuckerberg admitted that the company had fallen behind competitors in the AI race. His comments sparked a multi-billion-dollar spending spree marked by strategic talent hires. Meta hired ScaleAI CEO Alexandr Wang, Apple's top AI mind Ruoming Pang, and Nat Friedman, former CEO of Microsoft-owned GitHub, as well as multiple top OpenAI employees tempted by multi-year deals worth millions. The company is gathering this talent under a new group dedicated to developing AI superintelligence called Meta Superintelligence Labs.
Similar acqui-hire deals were struck by Microsoft and Amazon last year. Microsoft hired top employees from AI startup Inflection, including co-founder Mustafa Suleyman, who now leads Microsoft's AI division. Amazon hired co-founders and other top talent from the AI agent startup Adept.
This isn't Google's first rodeo with acqui-hiring, either. The tech giant inked a similar deal with the startup Character.AI roughly a year ago, which gave Google a non-exclusive license to its LLM technology and saw its two co-founders join the company.
OpenAI Hits the Panic Button
Beyond just being a symbol of a new era in the AI arms race, this surge in acqui-hires reveals a new playbook for Big Tech to grow its market dominance while sidestepping antitrust scrutiny. This tactic follows a period of intense regulatory pressure under former Federal Trade Commission (FTC) chairwoman Lina Khan, whose administration cracked down on alleged anti-competitive practices in the AI industry.
Both Meta and Google are already under intense scrutiny from the FTC.
Meta is awaiting a verdict on an antitrust trial over the FTC's claim that it holds a monopoly over social media. Google, on the other hand, has been dealt numerous antitrust defeats in the past year, accused of having monopolies in both internet search and online advertising. The company is awaiting the final results of a trial that could potentially see it forced to divest from its Chrome browser.
Early last year, under Khan's leadership, the Commission also launched an investigation into Microsoft, Amazon, and Google over their investments in AI startups OpenAI and Anthropic.
Under this cloud of regulatory pressure, it seems acqui-hiring is proving to be an easy way for Big Tech to get what it wants. The big names gain all the necessary access to the technology and top research talent of AI startups without having to go through the vetting hurdles of a formal acquisition.
Going forward, it is now up to the current FTC, under Trump-appointed chairman Andrew Ferguson, to define its stance on this practice. While not seen as the same kind of hardliner against Big Tech as Khan, Ferguson has largely continued to pursue the previous administration's investigations, even as President Trump has entertained Silicon Valley leaders at Mar-a-Lago.
How Ferguson's FTC and the Trump administration at large choose to respond, or not, to this new wave of regulatory loopholes will determine the future of American big tech and the AI industry as a whole.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Which Cryptocurrency Is More Likely to Be a Millionaire Maker? Bitcoin vs. Ethereum
Key Points Bitcoin and Ethereum have performed very differently this year. Bitcoin has continued to reach new all-time highs. Ethereum has barley budged as investors try to understand if the network's use case can stand the test of time. 10 stocks we like better than Bitcoin › Despite being the two largest cryptocurrencies in the world, Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) and Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH) have been on very different paths this year. Bitcoin is up more than 26% (as of July 17), while Ethereum is up less than 2%. Bitcoin is considered a bellwether for the industry, but this year has really diverged. This leaves investors with a difficult proposition when picking between the two: buy the asset that just went on a strong run and hit all-time highs, or the one that has underperformed and could close the gap as a value play? Which cryptocurrency is more likely to be a millionaire maker, Bitcoin or Ethereum? Bitcoin: Digital gold and a flight to safety? Bitcoin has soared since President Donald Trump won the election back in November. Trump positioned himself as a crypto advocate during his campaign, and he's held that position since taking office, with several Trump-backed organizations delving into the crypto world with their own crypto businesses. Trump has surrounded himself with crypto advisors and installed pro-crypto officials in his cabinet, most notably at the U.S. Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). The SEC, which was a lot tougher on crypto during former President Joe Biden's administration, has since dropped or settled many of its landmark cases against major crypto firms, while removing regulations that impeded growth. This has opened the door for the mainstream financial world to get more involved in crypto, whether it's offering custody services, more cryptocurrencies for sale on popular brokerages, or more willingness for institutions to buy and trade crypto. Bitcoin, as the most well-known cryptocurrency, is an obvious place to start and therefore will likely benefit from these prices. Trump also announced the creation of a U.S. Strategic Bitcoin Reserve that will hold Bitcoin already in custody by the U.S. government and look for budget-neutral ways to purchase more Bitcoin. Bitcoin also seems to be benefiting as more investors view it as a form of digital gold and therefore a hedge against inflation, with its finite supply of a maximum of 21 million coins, of which 19.9 million have already been mined. Regular gold has ripped in recent years, as investors grow increasingly concerned about the country's finances. The U.S. government now holds more $36.5 trillion in debt and has accumulated a $1.34 trillion deficit thus far in fiscal year 2025 after running a $1.83 trillion deficit in fiscal 2024. Geopolitical uncertainty has also made gold and potentially Bitcoin more attractive. Ethereum: Are the advantages real? Ethereum does not offer the same digital gold proposition as Bitcoin, but investors have largely viewed it favorably. For one, the network became the go-to place for developers to build smart contracts -- agreements that self-executive when certain terms are met. Many developers have also built their own tokens like Shiba Inu on Ethereum's network. Several years ago, many began to criticize the high energy usage of cryptocurrencies due to the proof-of-work mining consensus mechanism needed to validate and mint new blocks. Ethereum then executed a multiyear project to convert to a proof-of-stake system, in which Ethereum holders stake their tokens to have a chance to validate and mint new blocks. Through this process, investors could earn yield on their tokens being staked, leading some like Cathie Wood to suggest that Ethereum has "attributes" similar to that of U.S. Treasury bills. However, Ethereum has long struggled with congestion issues on its network, and competitors like Solana seem to pose a rising challenge. Furthermore, Ethereum seems to have lagged this year due to some of the same challenges that tech stocks have encountered like high interest rates and geopolitical uncertainty. On the plus side, several companies have begun deploying crypto treasury strategies for Ethereum similar to Michael Saylor's Strategy. Many like top investment strategist Tom Lee also see immense potential for the network due to the rise of stablecoins, which have become a popular topic of discussion since stablecoin issuer Circle went public earlier this year and saw its stock soar. The two largest stablecoins, Tether and USDC, are both hosted on Ethereum's network. Which is more likely to make you a millionaire? In my opinion, Bitcoin and Ethereum are really the only two cryptocurrencies that investors can safely buy and hold in their portfolios. Both are likely to remain somewhat volatile, and both offer strong use cases. But if I had to pick one, I am still going to choose Bitcoin. Whether it turns out to be true or not, a sizable portion of investors believe Bitcoin is a form of digital gold and the token's resilience through market turbulence, as well as a decrease in volatility, largely supports this narrative. This makes Bitcoin unique in that it can offer a form of diversification. Furthermore, BlackRock, the largest asset manager in the world, has said that it's OK to allocate as much as 2% of a multi-asset portfolio to Bitcoin, which could make it a more common holding in the typical portfolio. Again, I think it's perfectly fine to own Ethereum, but Bitcoin really seems like it has achieved a level of acceptance that few, if any, cryptocurrencies will be able to replicate. Should you buy stock in Bitcoin right now? Before you buy stock in Bitcoin, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Bitcoin wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $687,149!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,060,406!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,069% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 180% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 15, 2025 Bram Berkowitz has positions in Bitcoin and Ethereum. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Which Cryptocurrency Is More Likely to Be a Millionaire Maker? Bitcoin vs. Ethereum was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Delta Air Lines to pay $8.1 million in settlement. What did the Georgia company do?
A major Georgia-based company recently settled out of federal court for a COVID-era program. Delta Air Lines allegedly violated the False Claims Act in connection to the U.S. Treasury Department's Payroll Support Program, according to a Tuesday news release from the U.S. Justice Department. Here's what we know: What is the Payroll Support Program? The PSP was reportedly stabbed in March 2020 under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act to provide payroll support to passenger and cargo air carriers and certain contractors for the continuation of payment of employee wages, salaries, and benefits. What was Delta charged with? Air carriers participating in the program were required to enter into written agreements with the treasury that imposed certain conditions in exchange for the receipt of PSP funds. Among other requirements were limitations on the amount of compensation that participants could pay to certain corporate officers and employees earning annual compensation in excess of $425,000. From 2020 to 2023, Delta allegedly awarded some corporate officers and employees compensation exceeding the limits, and violated the False Claims Act by inaccurately certifying compliance with the requirements as well as not notifying the treasure of the breach. How much was Delta Air Lines required to pay? Delta agreed to pay $8.1 million to resolve the allegations. The justice department said this was a coordinated effort between multiple divisions of their agency, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia with help from the treasury. Where is the Delta Air Lines headquarters? Delta's global headquarters are located in Atlanta at 1030 Delta Blvd. just outside the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Miguel Legoas is a Deep South Connect Team Reporter for Gannett/USA Today. Find him on Instagram @miguelegoas and email at mlegoas@ This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Delta Air Lines from Georgia to pay $8.1 settlement for payroll claims Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Social Security: The 1 Thing Every Worker Today Needs to Know
Key Points Social Security is a lifeline for millions of retirees today. If you're still working, you should know that the program is not going to disappear, and that benefit cuts may even be preventable. There's another important aspect of Social Security all workers should keep in mind. The $23,760 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook › If you're a member of the workforce today, you may not be intimately familiar with Social Security if you're not in a place where you're gearing up to claim benefits. Still, you may be aware of a few key things. You probably know that Social Security is an important income source for millions of retired Americans today. And you've probably at least heard rumors about Social Security's potential demise. To set the record straight on Social Security, let's start by clearing up what's happening with the program's finances. Social Security is in a situation where, in the coming years, it expects to owe more in benefits than it collects in revenue. The program can use its trust funds to bridge that gap -- but only for so long. The latest update on Social Security's combined trust funds is that they're expected to be depleted in 2034. At that point, the program could face extensive cuts. To be clear, though, Social Security is not at risk of completely disappearing. And while benefit cuts are certainly possible, lawmakers have never allowed them to happen in the past. As such, the situation may be salvageable this time around, too. However, there's another important thing about Social Security every working person needs to know today. And not having this essential information could cause problems once your retirement rolls around. Know what to really expect from Social Security Social Security may not end up having to cut benefits, which is really great news. But that doesn't mean those benefits will replace your preretirement paycheck in full. It's a big misconception that once you retire, Social Security will pay you a monthly benefit equal to an amount you're used to earning. In reality, Social Security might only replace about 40% of your preretirement earnings -- and that's assuming you collect a pretty typical paycheck. If you're a higher earner, Social Security might replace an even smaller percentage of your wages. Now, you may be thinking, "But don't many people retire on Social Security alone?" And the answer is yes, they do. A lot of people also smoke cigarettes, but that doesn't make it a healthy habit. The reality is that you can expect your expenses to decline in retirement to some degree. You might have a paid-off home by then, and your transportation costs might shrink if you're not commuting to work. But for the most part, you should not expect to be able to live comfortably on 40% of your preretirement wages. Getting by on 60% to 70% of your former paycheck may be doable if you're able to shed some costs. It depends on what you want retirement to look like. Retiring on just Social Security, however, is not a great idea. And the sooner you recognize that, the more you can avoid that scenario. A little bit of savings can go a long way By now, you're hopefully convinced that it's important to save for retirement on your own, rather than just rely on Social Security to cover your future expenses. But if saving money were such an easy thing, more people would probably do it. So, let's not beat around the bush: Finding the money for long-term savings isn't always easy. However, you may not need to save as much as you'd think to amass a significant nest egg. If you give your money a lot of time to grow and invest it wisely, you may be able to get away with saving a fairly small amount each month. Say you start saving for retirement at 30 and end your career at 67. If you contribute $100 a month to an IRA or 401(k) plan that generates a yearly 8% return, which is a bit under the stock market's average, then you could be looking at a nest egg worth about $244,000 at the start of retirement. Make it $150 a month, and your balance rises to $365,000, all other things being equal. Of course, if your goal is to really not end up dependent on Social Security at all, you'll need more savings than that. The point, though, is that retiring on Social Security alone is unlikely to work out well for you -- even if benefit cuts do not come to be. So having supplemental income is crucial. The sooner you recognize that, the sooner you can begin saving and investing to pave the way to a more comfortable retirement. The $23,760 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook If you're like most Americans, you're a few years (or more) behind on your retirement savings. But a handful of little-known could help ensure a boost in your retirement income. One easy trick could pay you as much as $23,760 more... each year! Once you learn how to maximize your Social Security benefits, we think you could retire confidently with the peace of mind we're all after. Join Stock Advisor to learn more about these Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Social Security: The 1 Thing Every Worker Today Needs to Know was originally published by The Motley Fool
