Google Snags Spirit Airlines' 100M Emails for $10 Million

Google has acquired a massive dataset from Spirit Airlines' corporate archive for $10 million. The deal includes approximately 100 million emails, 500 million Microsoft Teams records, and decades of operational data. This trove of information will help Google improve its products and AI models.

The sale excludes identifiable passenger information, but it does give Google access to a detailed record of how thousands of employees operated, and ultimately failed to save, one of the world's most influential ultra-low-cost carriers.

Spirit selected Google's offer at a virtual auction on August 14, with AI recruitment company Mercor designated as the backup buyer at $7.5 million. Judge Sean H. Lane is scheduled to consider the sale on August 19 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.