Global mergers and acquisitions activity has remained resilient in 2026 despite continuing geopolitical tensions that have contributed to market volatility and concerns over inflation and interest rates. Large corporate transactions have continued to move ahead, particularly in the technology sector, as companies pursue assets tied to artificial intelligence.
Annual global deal value is on track to reach $4 trillion this year, making 2026 the strongest year for mergers and acquisitions since 2021. According to a report released Tuesday by PwC, deals valued above $5 billion accounted for almost half of total global deal value during the first half of the year. Brian Levy, global deals industries leader at PwC US, said in the report that artificial intelligence has accelerated the divide between winners and losers across industries.
While the biggest transactions have gathered momentum, mid-sized deals continue to face headwinds. PwC said geopolitical uncertainty, valuation differences, slowing economic growth, higher borrowing costs and a backlog of private equity exits have continued to weigh on activity.
Technology companies have dominated some of the largest transactions announced this year. CNBC, citing PwC data, highlighted a series of AI-related acquisitions that have reshaped the market.
One of them involves SpaceX, which recently reached an agreement to acquire AI coding startup Cursor in a $60 billion all-stock deal. TechCrunch reported that the transaction came just days after SpaceX's record-breaking initial public offering and is aimed at strengthening its artificial intelligence business amid increasing competition with OpenAI and Anthropic. The deal involves Anysphere, the company behind Cursor, and is expected to close later this year.
Salesforce also announced a $3.6 billion agreement to acquire AI customer service platform Fin. According to Salesforce, the acquisition will add Fin's customer agent technology and proprietary Apex model to its Agentforce platform. The company said the move is intended to expand AI capabilities across customer service operations.
Separate reporting from TechCrunch said Salesforce plans to integrate Fin's technology into its existing enterprise AI products as competition intensifies among software companies seeking to expand automated services.
Another notable deal under discussion involves Qualcomm. Bloomberg reported that the chipmaker is in talks to acquire AI semiconductor company Modular in a transaction that would value the business at around $4 billion.
PwC said artificial intelligence is also changing how transactions are evaluated and executed, with companies relying on both data-driven insights and human judgment during dealmaking.
