Jeff Wang got a big promotion last month. There were lots of tears, but not the happy kind. The 39-year-old was unexpectedly named interim CEO of artificial intelligence coding startup Windsurf. The company had been in discussions with OpenAI about a potential acquisition that would have resulted in a handsome payday for many employees. But the talks fell apart and, on July 11, several founders and top researchers instead left to join Google as part of a $2.4 billion licensing deal. As one of the highest-ranking executives remaining at Windsurf, Wang was elevated to the top job, at least for the time being. His first order of business, he told CNBC, was to break the news at a tense all-hands meeting at the startup’s Silicon Valley headquarters. “It was a very, very challenging day,” Wang said. “People were crying. It was very, very emotional. I was spending half the time calming down people, because they have families and they got nothing.” Windsurf is part of a growing crop of AI startups whose founders and top researchers have been poached by megacaps like Meta, Google, Microsoft and Amazon through high-priced talent grabs that are helping the biggest companies skirt regulatory scrutiny. While the deals often produce big payouts for founders and AI leaders, they can leave investors, other employees and the remaining company in limbo.

Full report : Regulatory hurdles surrounding M&A have led tech giants to use an alternative tactic to acquire talent in artificial intelligence.