USA TRENDS AND DEVELOPMENTS Contributed by: George Casey, Heiko Schiwek, Elena Rubinov, Vinita Sithapathy, Kristina Trauger, Pierre-Emmanuel Perais, Clara Pang and Gregory Gewirtz, Linklaters
A More Positive Outlook for Tech M&A The US tech M&A landscape is poised to continue its surge in 2026, fuelled by rapid advances in AI tech- nology and increasing demand for AI infrastructure and technologies from investors and companies alike. Amidst a period of subdued M&A activity due to high interest rates, geopolitical tensions and prevailing market uncertainty, the technology sector has shown strong resilience, rebounding from volatility seen in recent years. Strategic buyers, private equity and ven- ture capital investors continue to demonstrate robust interest in AI and its complementary sectors, including cybersecurity, high-performance cloud computing, and digital and power infrastructures. Cross-Sector Convergence Technological innovation (particularly in AI) continues to drive deal making across the US economy, with non-tech companies increasingly acquiring tech start- ups and established firms to modernise operations and remain competitive. Sectors such as retail, manu- facturing, finance, healthcare, energy and infrastruc- ture are leveraging tech M&A to access advanced R&D capabilities, accelerate product development and integrate new technologies more efficiently than when building them in-house. This trend has broadened the pool of potential acquir- ers for tech targets and is expected to persist despite macroeconomic uncertainties, including inflationary pressures and geopolitical instability. Blurring lines between software, infrastructure and services are encouraging cross-sector and cross-bor- der consolidation. Companies are acquiring end-to- end capabilities – from chips to cloud to applications. Examples of recent, significant cross-industry acquisi- tions include Synopsys’s USD35 billion acquisition of Ansys (involving Synopsys’s semiconductor electronic design automation solutions and Ansys’s simulation and analysis capabilities) and Google’s USD32 billion acquisition of Wiz to help Google Cloud offer security across all major cloud platforms. AI Driving Tech M&A Investor appetite for AI opportunities remains strong, evidenced by a 127% increase in total AI-related deal value in North America during H1 2025, and driven
by strategic acquisitions and premium valuations for high-performing AI start-ups. This reflects a shift towards quality over quantity, as companies priori- tise access to talent, proprietary models and scalable infrastructure. Globally, the USA maintains its leadership in AI invest- ment and adoption, accounting for over USD470 bil- lion in AI-related spending. This dominance is fuelled by widespread integration of AI across sectors such as healthcare, automotive, retail, finance and defence, as well as the presence of major vendors including NVIDIA, Google, Microsoft, OpenAI and Intel. The USA also leads in generative AI development, compute infrastructure and enterprise AI deployment. As AI becomes increasingly central to corporate strat- egy, M&A activity is expected to remain robust, with buyers targeting capabilities in multimodal AI, agen- tic systems, cloud-native tooling and AI-enhanced cybersecurity. According to PwC’s 2025 CEO survey, 40% of executives believe that their companies will not remain competitive without a significant AI trans- formation – underscoring the strategic importance of AI in deal making. Private Equity Momentum Looking ahead to 2026, investors have gained opti- mism following the Federal Reserve’s first interest rate cut of 2025 (in September) and cautious signals of a downward trend following signs of inflation easing and labour market concerns. Lowering borrowing costs are expected to unlock mid-market M&A, enabling more strategic acquisi- tions. As enterprises continue to scale generative AI and agentic AI matures, investment is flowing into advanced technologies and the digital infrastructure necessary to support them. Equipped with record levels of dry powder, private equity firms are targeting high-quality, scalable oppor- tunities. Private equity firms are actively deploying capital into high-growth areas such as AI, cyberse- curity, data centres, cloud infrastructure and vertical Software as a Service (SaaS) – prioritising targets with recurring revenue models, strong unit economics and integration potential.
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