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Crunchbase counted 195 acquisitions of AI startups by other venture-backed AI companies through September 29, 2026—14% more than the full-year 2025 count. The number of buyers grew just 2%, and OpenAI was the most active buyer in the period reviewed. The count covers publicly reported transactions in Crunchbase’s dataset, not every deal in the market.
What the 195-acquisition figure counts
The figure is limited to acquisitions of AI startups by other venture-backed AI companies. It is not a count of every AI-related acquisition, and it does not include deals that have not been publicly reported, according to Crunchbase’s note on its analysis. The data cutoff was September 29, 2026; the report was published October 6, 2026.
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Crunchbase reported that the 195 transactions were 14% above the entire 2025 count. Over the comparison described in the report, the number of buyers increased by only 2%. Deal volume therefore rose much faster than the buyer pool, pointing to more activity by repeat acquirers rather than a similarly large expansion in the number of companies buying.
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Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Crunchbase identified 67 repeat buyers, which together accounted for about 42% of transactions tracked across the three-year period it reviewed. These are dataset-based totals, not independently audited global figures.
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OpenAI was the most active buyer
OpenAI led Crunchbase’s buyer rankings, with 10 acquisitions in 2026 through the September 29 cutoff and 20 AI-related acquisitions across the three-year period reviewed. Other reported 2026 totals were:
| Buyer | Acquisitions in 2026 through Sept. 29 |
|---|---|
| Anthropic | 5 |
| Legora | 5 |
| Harvey | 4 |
| Sierra | 3 |
| Cursor | 3 |
| Cohere | 2 |
These counts describe acquisitions in the report’s stated period and scope; they should not be compared with rankings built from a different cutoff or a broader definition of AI deals. Crunchbase also noted that many buyers are vertical AI startups acquiring within their own fields.
Why AI startups are acquiring other startups
Crunchbase’s analysis describes acquisitions as a way for startups to fill product gaps, enter markets, bring specialized teams in-house, broaden platforms, or reach customers faster than building everything internally. The report cites activity across legal technology, customer service, software development, healthcare, scientific writing, developer infrastructure, security, and computational photography.
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Outbyte Driver Updater FREEScan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Those are reported strategic aims, not evidence that a particular acquisition delivered its intended results. Legora CFO David Eckstein described the company’s test for a deal this way: “M&A is explicitly part of how we accelerate what we’re building. The question we always ask is: does this deal get us somewhere faster than we’d get there ourselves?”
Menlo Ventures partner Rama Sekhar summarized the timing pressure: “It’s all about speed in the AI world,” adding, “It’s faster to acquire a team or product than build it yourself.” Harvey COO Katie Burke characterized Harvey’s approach as “selective but aggressive.” These comments offer examples of how participants explain acquisition activity; they do not establish a single motive for all buyers.
Disclosed deal prices reveal only part of the picture
Crunchbase reported a price for just 12 of the 195 transactions, so the dataset does not establish total spending across the market. The report named these largest deals among those with recorded prices:
- Nscale’s reported acquisition of Anyscale for $1.65 billion.
- Cyera’s acquisition of Oasis Security for $1 billion.
- Anthropic’s acquisition of Coefficient Bio for $400 million.
- OpenAI’s acquisition of Glass Imaging for $300 million.
- Sword Health’s acquisition of Kaia Health, valued at up to $285 million.
These figures are values reported in the Crunchbase article, not independently verified valuations. They should not be read as a complete accounting of consideration paid or as a basis for estimating the total value of all 195 transactions.
Source and scope
The counts, rankings, growth rates, and deal-price examples above are attributed to Crunchbase News and its Crunchbase dataset. The report by Mary Ann Azevedo was published October 6, 2026, and covers transactions through September 29, 2026. Crunchbase says its analysis excludes deals that have not been publicly reported. Read the Crunchbase News report.
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