Jeff Wang, Windsurf's interim CEO, shared details about the company's acquisition by Cognition following a failed deal with OpenAI and the departure of key executives to Google DeepMind.
The initial news of the Google deal and executive departures led to a demoralized team, but Wang and Cognition executives negotiated an acquisition that prioritized employee payouts, waived cliffs, and accelerated vesting for Windsurf equity.
Wang highlighted the complementary nature of the two companies, with Cognition's strong engineering team and Windsurf's go-to-market and marketing expertise creating a synergistic fit.
The acquisition was finalized quickly, turning what Wang described as "probably the worst day of 250 people’s lives" into "probably the best day."