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Windsurf's CEO is headed to Google DeepMind — not to OpenAI

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The Department of Justice's latest antitrust case against Google has kicked off. Roberto Machado Noa/Getty Images
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Windsurf's CEO and several key researchers at the AI coding assistant startup are headed to Google.

In a statement to Business Insider, a Google spokesperson confirmed that Windsurf CEO Varun Mohan and others from the startup would be joining its DeepMind team as part of the company's continued investment "in its advanced capabilities for developers."

"We're excited to welcome some top AI coding talent from Windsurf's team to Google DeepMind to advance our work in agentic coding," Google's spokesperson said. "We're excited to continue bringing the benefits of Gemini to software developers everywhere."

Mohan and Windsurf cofounder Douglas Chen said in a statement to BI that the pair are "excited to be joining Google DeepMind along with some of the Windsurf team."

"We are proud of what Windsurf has built over the last four years and are excited to see it move forward with their world-class team and kick-start the next phase," Mohan and Chen's statement continued.

On Friday, The Verge first reported that Windsurf's tentative $3 billion deal with OpenAI was off the table.

Business Insider previously reported that Windsurf's potential to roll up to OpenAI, a direct competitor to Microsoft's Copilot, had been sharpening tensions between OpenAI and Microsoft. Microsoft is OpenAI's biggest investor.

Representatives for OpenAI confirmed that the deal with Windsurf expired a bit ago.

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Katherine (Tangalakis-Lippert) Ortiz
Katherine (Tangalakis-Lippert) Ortiz was a senior reporter on Business Insider's West Coast team. For four and a half years, her coverage spanned topics and industries, including chasing breaking news — such as the assassination attempts against President Donald Trump, and major legal actions against companies like Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI — as well as producing scoops about the Supreme Court, Starbucks, and many more. Katherine has worked on award-nominated projects and has appeared on Good Morning America, NBC, CNN, and other outlets to discuss her reporting.Prior to joining Business Insider, she covered retail, hospitality, and nonprofits at the San Fernando Valley Business Journal and received a master's degree in investigative reporting from the University of Southern California.Reach outDo you have feedback or a story tip? Contact Katherine on Signal at byktl.50, or follow her on Twitter and Instagram @scrawlgirl.Some of the highlights from her time at Business Insider include: Starbucks set up a new office. It's a 5-minute drive from the CEO's California home.Inside Starbucks' crackdown on cup notesEndless Shrimp was Red Lobster's rock bottom. Now it's clawing back.Clarence Thomas raised him 'as a son.' Now he's facing 25-plus years on weapons and drug charges.Call her Ivanka Kushner'Maybe I'll just resign:' Federal workers react to DOGE productivity emailSpaceX launches cause late-night booms that rattle windows, set off car alarms, and may damage property. Locals are pushing back.The US-China tech race is moving from chips to the raw materials they're made of
Lloyd Lee
Lloyd Lee