Acquihires In the Technology Sector: Antitrust Scrutiny Through the Lens of Economics

This paper examines the economic and regulatory implications of “acqui-hires” in the technology sector, including both traditional acquisitions and emerging “reverse acqui-hire” arrangements. Drawing on recent literature and case examples, it assesses how such transactions may influence innovation, competition, and labor market outcomes. Regulators and scholars have raised four principal concerns: that acqui-hires may function as disguised “killer acquisitions,” reduce incentives for