Google Hires Windsurf Talent in $2.4B Deal

Google has finalized a $2.4 billion deal to hire Windsurf's CEO Varun Mohan, co-founder Douglas Chen, and select R&D staff, while obtaining a non-exclusive license to some of Windsurf’s AI coding technology. This follows the collapse of OpenAI's $3 billion acquisition bid, which failed due to Microsoft's insistence on intellectual property access as a condition of its investment in OpenAI. Windsurf remains independent, with Jeff Wang appointed as interim CEO and the company continuing to operate its enterprise AI coding platform. The hired talent will join Google DeepMind to advance agentic coding and contribute to the Gemini generative AI platform. This arrangement exemplifies a trend where tech giants use strategic hiring and licensing over outright acquisitions to sidestep regulatory scrutiny. The developments underscore fierce competition among Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI in the evolving AI software development space.