Thought Leadership
The AI start-up Cognition buys Windsurf just a few days after the spectacular departure of its CEO to Google. The deal shows the intensity of the battle for AI talent.
The startup Cognition, which specializes in artificial intelligence, has announced the acquisition of Windsurf after Google poached the CEO and other executives of the AI coding company just a few days ago.
Cognition announced on Monday that it will take over the intellectual property rights, products, brand rights and employees of Windsurf. Financial details were not disclosed. The deal is the latest development in a fierce competition for top engineers and researchers, with technology giants such as Meta, Google and OpenAI outbidding each other.
Failed 3-billion-dollar takeover by OpenAI
Back in April, OpenAI held talks about a takeover of Windsurf for around 3 billion dollars, but the deal fell through. Google seized the opportunity and signed Windsurf co-founder and CEO Varun Mohan on Friday. As reported by CNBC, Google is paying 2.4 billion dollars in license fees and compensation.
“Every new Cognition employee will be treated the same as existing employees: with transparency, fairness and deep respect for their skills and value,” wrote Cognition CEO Scott Wu in an internal memo. “As of today, we are working as a unified and aligned team. There is only one boat and we are all in it together.”
Cognition is best known for its AI coding agent Devin, which is designed to help developers create software faster. “I’m overwhelmed with excitement and optimism, but mostly gratitude,” Jeff Wang, the interim CEO of Windsurf, wrote in a post on X. “Difficult times show character, and I couldn’t be prouder of how everyone at Windsurf has stepped up for each other and our users over the past three days.”
