{
  "study": "The founders leave: the AI acqui-hire record, deal by deal",
  "url": "https://provenbrief.com/story/the-founders-leave-the-ai-acqui-hire-record-deal-by-deal",
  "publisher": "ProvenBrief",
  "contentUpdatedAt": "2026-09-29T15:43:23.097Z",
  "terms": "Free to use with attribution to ProvenBrief and a link to the source page.",
  "tables": [
    {
      "key": "deal-value-b",
      "title": "Disclosed value of the five unfiled AI acqui-hire deals since 2023",
      "measure": "disclosed or reported deal value at announcement",
      "unit": "USD billions",
      "rows": [
        {
          "key": "msft-inflection",
          "label": "Microsoft-Inflection (Mar 2024)",
          "value": 0.65,
          "note": "reported ~$650M license-and-personnel arrangement",
          "source": "https://www.itechguides.com/inflection-ai-ceo-says-its-done-trying-to-make-next-generation-ai-models-what-that-really-means/"
        },
        {
          "key": "google-windsurf",
          "label": "Google-Windsurf (date not disclosed)",
          "value": 2.4,
          "note": "reported nonexclusive license value",
          "source": "https://natlawreview.com/article/nvidia-groq-ai-deal-if-it-quacks-merger-and-acts-merger"
        },
        {
          "key": "google-character",
          "label": "Google-Character.AI (Aug 2024)",
          "value": 2.7,
          "note": "licensing deal",
          "source": "https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/07/google-characterai-to-settle-suits-involving-suicides-ai-chatbots.html"
        },
        {
          "key": "meta-scale",
          "label": "Meta-Scale AI (Jun 2025)",
          "value": 14.3,
          "note": "49% minority stake",
          "source": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandr_Wang"
        },
        {
          "key": "nvidia-groq",
          "label": "Nvidia-Groq (Dec 2025)",
          "value": 17,
          "note": "Reuters-reported; other public reports near $20B per National Law Review",
          "source": "https://www.techtimes.com/articles/327154/20260910/doj-opens-formal-probe-nvidia-groq-deal-reverse-acquihire-playbook-faces-first-legal-test.htm"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "key": "hsr-multiples",
      "title": "Each deal as a multiple of the $119.5M Hart-Scott-Rodino filing threshold",
      "measure": "disclosed deal value divided by the $119.5M HSR premerger reporting threshold (ProvenBrief computation on cited inputs; threshold per TechTimes)",
      "unit": "times the $119.5M HSR filing threshold",
      "rows": [
        {
          "key": "msft-inflection-mult",
          "label": "Microsoft-Inflection (Mar 2024)",
          "value": 5.4,
          "note": "computed: $650M ÷ $119.5M",
          "source": "https://www.itechguides.com/inflection-ai-ceo-says-its-done-trying-to-make-next-generation-ai-models-what-that-really-means/"
        },
        {
          "key": "google-windsurf-mult",
          "label": "Google-Windsurf (date not disclosed)",
          "value": 20.1,
          "note": "computed: $2.4B ÷ $119.5M",
          "source": "https://natlawreview.com/article/nvidia-groq-ai-deal-if-it-quacks-merger-and-acts-merger"
        },
        {
          "key": "google-character-mult",
          "label": "Google-Character.AI (Aug 2024)",
          "value": 22.6,
          "note": "computed: $2.7B ÷ $119.5M",
          "source": "https://www.cnbc.com/2026/01/07/google-characterai-to-settle-suits-involving-suicides-ai-chatbots.html"
        },
        {
          "key": "meta-scale-mult",
          "label": "Meta-Scale AI (Jun 2025)",
          "value": 119.7,
          "note": "computed: $14.3B ÷ $119.5M",
          "source": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexandr_Wang"
        },
        {
          "key": "nvidia-groq-mult",
          "label": "Nvidia-Groq (Dec 2025)",
          "value": 142.3,
          "note": "computed: $17B ÷ $119.5M",
          "source": "https://www.techtimes.com/articles/327154/20260910/doj-opens-formal-probe-nvidia-groq-deal-reverse-acquihire-playbook-faces-first-legal-test.htm"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "key": "outcome-counts",
      "title": "Scoreboard across the five unfiled deals",
      "measure": "count of deals in this record with each outcome",
      "unit": "deals (of 5)",
      "rows": [
        {
          "key": "founders-to-buyer",
          "label": "Founder or founders moved to the buyer",
          "value": 5,
          "note": "Suleyman; Shazeer and De Freitas; Windsurf CEO and co-founder; Wang; Ross",
          "source": "https://www.techtimes.com/articles/327154/20260910/doj-opens-formal-probe-nvidia-groq-deal-reverse-acquihire-playbook-faces-first-legal-test.htm"
        },
        {
          "key": "hsr-filings",
          "label": "Filed under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act",
          "value": 0,
          "note": "measured count, not unknown: TechTimes reports none of the family was filed",
          "source": "https://www.techtimes.com/articles/327154/20260910/doj-opens-formal-probe-nvidia-groq-deal-reverse-acquihire-playbook-faces-first-legal-test.htm"
        },
        {
          "key": "formal-probes",
          "label": "Formal DOJ information request to date",
          "value": 1,
          "note": "Nvidia-Groq, Sept 2026; first formal probe of the structure",
          "source": "https://www.techtimes.com/articles/327154/20260910/doj-opens-formal-probe-nvidia-groq-deal-reverse-acquihire-playbook-faces-first-legal-test.htm"
        },
        {
          "key": "flagship-killed",
          "label": "Flagship product killed outright",
          "value": 0,
          "note": "ProvenBrief count across the five cited rows: demoted, restricted or rebuilt, none killed",
          "source": "https://www.techtimes.com/articles/327154/20260910/doj-opens-formal-probe-nvidia-groq-deal-reverse-acquihire-playbook-faces-first-legal-test.htm"
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}