Micro1 Challenges Google's Bid for Spirit Airlines' Data
A startup called Micro1 is challenging Google's winning bid of $10 million for Spirit Airlines' internal records, which include 600 million workplace messages and 30 million lines of code. The company's CEO, Ali Ansari, argues that the price was too low for such a valuable dataset.
The sale includes emails, Microsoft Teams chats, collaboration records, data tied to revenue, aircraft operations, employee productivity, audits, and fraud investigations. However, passenger profiles and Free Spirit loyalty records are excluded from the deal.
Micro1's late bid of $12.5 million is significantly higher than Google's offer, but it also raises concerns about data privacy. The Association of Flight Attendants-CWA has objected to the sale, warning that even deidentified data can still expose individuals or small groups when links across datasets stay intact.
A hearing is set for September 9 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York to weigh the union's objection and consider Micro1's higher bid.