In a plot twist, no one saw, the $ 3 billion deal with Open-Lochene has officially drowned to acquire AI coding startup windsurf, and Google Deepmind has just rode Surfboard.

Yesterday, The Verge broke the news that Openi’s acquisition plans had collapsed, and within hours, Google pulled a bold recruitment coup. Windsurf CEO Varun Mohan, co-founder Douglas Chen, and a team of top researchers are now going to Google’s Elite AI Research Division Dipmind. A Google spokesperson of Techcrunch later confirmed the move.

But here it is that it becomes spicy: Google is not buying windsurf. Instead, it agrees to pay $ 2.4 billion for a noxclusive license for some technology of the company, which means Windsurf is independent and free to partner with others. While the top brass of the startup is leaving to join the Google fold, the remaining 250-individuals continue to live in the rest of the team and run the operation.

Jeff Wang, the head of Windsurf’s business, has stepped as an interim CEO. In a post on social media, he assured everyone that Windsurf’s enterprise AI coding tools are not going anywhere. The company mines some high-profile departure, and Google will have no stake or control in its operation.

This is not your average Big techover, it is the latest example of a clever maneuver known as “reverse aquihair”. Instead of buying the company outright (and invite regulators here), technical giants such as Google and Microsoft are rapidly opting for regretting major talent and license to technology. It is rapid, cleaner, and less likely to end on the front page of antitrust filing.

Google has played the game before. Remember that when it wooed the character. Microsoft drawn the same trick with Mustafa Suleman. This escalating is part of the AI Arms Race, where the brain and code are the most valuable currency.

Meanwhile, Openai is left with more than just one dental in its acquisition record. According to The Wall Street Journal, Windsurf’s technology became a controversial issue in its partnership with Microsoft, already access to the IP of Openai. The decision of the startup decision to pive away from Openai helped avoid further stress, but it won an important rival.

Earlier on Friday, Fortune reported that the specificity period for Openai’s proposal was over. Apparently, Windsurf did not waste time window purchases, by noon, Google Deepmind deal was already making waves. In the world of AI’s high-day, things move rapidly, and the real award is not just technology, it is the people behind it.