Google has acquired all documents from the bankrupt American airline Spirit Airlines.
And the emphasis is on the word "all", as the deal includes the company's internal documents, spreadsheet files, email messages, and even Teams messages.
The seller was Spirit Airlines' bankruptcy estate, which auctioned off the data mass accumulated by Spirit Airlines over decades. There were several bidders in the auction, and Google's offer of 10 million dollars was ultimately the highest bid according to court records (PDF).
According to a statement given to CNN, Google plans to use the acquired data "to improve its products and develop its AI models". The second highest bid came from a company that also intended to use the data for developing its own AI models.
According to information submitted to the court, all personal and individually identifying data will be removed from the delivered information, meaning they do not violate anyone's privacy under US law.
The deal is still awaiting final approval from the court. Spirit Airlines began operations under that name in 1992, meaning it operated for a total of 34 years. The company was the largest low-cost airline in the United States.
The seller was Spirit Airlines' bankruptcy estate, which auctioned off the data mass accumulated by Spirit Airlines over decades. There were several bidders in the auction, and Google's offer of 10 million dollars was ultimately the highest bid according to court records (PDF).
According to a statement given to CNN, Google plans to use the acquired data "to improve its products and develop its AI models". The second highest bid came from a company that also intended to use the data for developing its own AI models.
According to information submitted to the court, all personal and individually identifying data will be removed from the delivered information, meaning they do not violate anyone's privacy under US law.
The deal is still awaiting final approval from the court. Spirit Airlines began operations under that name in 1992, meaning it operated for a total of 34 years. The company was the largest low-cost airline in the United States.
