The second archetype shaping the AI economy’s M&A landscape is the Platform War. The core logic: whoever owns the distribution surface controls the margin.
Netflix and Paramount are competing to acquire Warner Bros Discovery in a battle valued at over $100 billion. Two major streaming players fighting for the same target.
But this isn’t about content libraries—Netflix already has content, Paramount already has content.
This is about owning the recommendation surface where AI-mediated discovery happens.
The strategic context has shifted:
Content is commoditizing while distribution is consolidating
The interface where users discover content captures the value
AI-powered recommendations increasingly determine what gets watched
Platform lock-in creates compounding advantages
The AI Parallel
The streaming wars and AI platform wars share identical dynamics:
Platform
Metric
Strategic Implication
ChatGPT
79% returning users
Distribution moat through workflow lock-in
Gemini
50% new user rate
Growth mode but retention gap to close
Claude Enterprise
Agentic focus
Betting on workflow integration
Microsoft/Azure
Diversifying from OpenAI
Reducing platform dependence
The AI Coding Tools War
The developer tools space perfectly illustrates platform war dynamics:
Tool
Valuation
Status
Cursor
$2.5B+
Breakout leader, rumored MS/Google interest
Windsurf
$2.4B
Acquired by Google
GitHub Copilot
1.8M+ subscribers
Microsoft’s incumbent
Replit
$1.2B
Browser-based IDE going AI-native
Whoever controls what code developers see controls developer productivity, and ultimately, what software gets built.
The Four Strategic Principles
Surface equals power. The interface owner captures value regardless of what runs underneath.
AI mediates discovery. Controlling that mediation layer becomes the strategic prize.
Network effects compound. Every interaction improves recommendations, attracting more users.
Winner-take-most is structural. Platform economics don’t support five equal players.
The insight: Content, models, and features commoditize. Interfaces do not.
Gennaro is the creator of FourWeekMBA, which reached about four million business people, comprising C-level executives, investors, analysts, product managers, and aspiring digital entrepreneurs in 2022 alone | He is also Director of Sales for a high-tech scaleup in the AI Industry | In 2012, Gennaro earned an International MBA with emphasis on Corporate Finance and Business Strategy.
