# Microsoft is actively seeking AI startups for potential acquisitions.

*genai · news · 2026-05-14 · The Economic Times*

## Key points

- Microsoft is seeking acquisitions of AI startups to reduce reliance on OpenAI for future AI models.
- Microsoft is in acquisition talks with Inception, a Stanford-founded startup using diffusion for large language models.
- Microsoft's contract with OpenAI was amended in late 2025, now allowing Microsoft to build artificial general intelligence.
- Inception's diffusion-based approach generates multiple tokens in parallel, potentially increasing language model speed.
- Startup valuations have soared, with Inception seeking over $1 billion and competing acquisition interest from SpaceX.

**Companies:** Microsoft, SpaceX, Inception, Cursor
**Countries:** United States

[Read the full story on The Economic Times](https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/startups/microsoft-eyeing-startup-deals-for-life-after-openai/articleshow/131080283.cms)

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