With a $2.4 billion agreement to license technology and hire top talent from AI coding startup Windsurf, Google has stepped up its efforts to dominate artificial intelligence. Varun Mohan, the CEO and co-founder of Windsurf, and a number of senior research and development employees join Google DeepMind as part of the deal, which was made public on Friday.
Google to pay $2.4 billion for AI executives from Windsurf
“We’re excited to welcome some top AI coding talent from Windsurf’s team to Google DeepMind to advance our work in agentic coding,” a spokesperson from Google said. “We’re excited to continue bringing the benefits of Gemini to software developers everywhere.”
The tech behemoth has obtained a nonexclusive license to some of Windsurf’s technology, but it will not make a direct investment in the startup. A source with knowledge of the situation claims that Windsurf maintains the option to grant licenses to other businesses for its goods, allowing the startup to remain independent while profiting from the investment. Both employee compensation and licensing fees are covered by the $2.4 billion payout.
After Windsurf allegedly held acquisition negotiations with OpenAI earlier this year, the deal represents a significant shift. An OpenAI representative confirmed the deal has since ended, despite CNBC’s report that the two parties had entered an exclusivity period to complete a $3 billion acquisition.
Meta appointed Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang as head of its artificial intelligence strategy, reflecting the company’s aggressive push to recruit AI talent. Meta’s $14.3 billion investment in Wang’s startup underscores the escalating arms race among tech giants for AI supremacy.
Known for its work in “vibe coding,” a development approach that uses artificial intelligence (AI) tools to create software, Windsurf has seen a sharp increase in popularity in 2024. Developers and investors have taken notice of the trend, which has raised valuations throughout the industry. Cursor, a rival platform that OpenAI reportedly contemplated purchasing, has also gained popularity.
Big Tech Arms Race Fuels AI Coding Boom and Talent Acquisition Frenzy
Co-founder Douglas Chen will also join Google, according to a post on X by Jeff Wang, Windsurf’s interim CEO and head of business for the previous two years. Wang stated that the majority of Windsurf’s elite team will keep developing the Windsurf product in order to maximize its enterprise impact.
Google’s selective hiring practices are comparable to those of Microsoft and Amazon, which acquired AI talent through the Adept and Inflection agreements, respectively. Google DeepMind welcomed Varun Mohan, the CEO and co-founder of Windsurf, along with several senior research and development employees, as part of a deal announced on Friday. The competition for engineering talent has grown as valuable as the technology itself as AI changes the software industry.
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