AI labs are buying data from dead startups to train models
Wind-down sales give failed companies' emails, chats and code a second life as AI training material.
Curious#08
$10 million
Google's price for Spirit Airlines' decades of data
Image: MIT Technology Review
$10 millionGoogle's price for Spirit Airlines' decades of data
The short version
- Startup shutdowns are rising, and a new group of firms helps founders sell their code and workspace data.
- SimpleClosure's Asset Hub has handled over 150 deals, and 47% of its deals now include code or data sales.
- Buyers include foundation AI labs, vendors that build simulated workspaces, and tech companies building their own models.
- In August, Google outbid Mercor to buy Spirit Airlines' data for $10 million, according to the article.
Why it matters
Real archives may help AI agents handle messy workplace tasks, but no company has published tests comparing them with synthetic data. Legal questions remain, including privacy and whether workers see any of the proceeds. Developers should watch how licensing and consent rules develop.
“Real archives avoid common errors in synthetic worlds, such as references to dates that don’t exist, but the extent of performance gains remains unclear.”