Ex-Groq engineers sue over Nvidia's $20B deal

What happened: Two former Groq engineers filed suit Monday in Delaware's Court of Chancery against Groq's board, naming founder Jonathan Ross and President Sunny Madra. In December 2025, Nvidia paid about $17 billion in licensing fees plus roughly $3 billion in stock bonuses to bring over about 200 Groq engineers, about $20 billion in all, in a deal described as non-exclusive. The suit says the board skipped a stockholder vote Delaware law requires and left Groq a hollowed-out shell, and that board conflicts left common stockholders billions worse off. The Justice Department is already looking at the deal, per a September New York Times report. Both plaintiffs left Groq before the deal but kept their stock.
Austin's take: Austin calls it a license and hire move used to buy startups without technically buying them. He suspects the plaintiffs may be opportunistic after missing a big payday, says litigation is expected with numbers this big, and wishes Groq and Nvidia more luck.
Why it matters: If a court says these deals need a shareholder vote, Big Tech's playbook for absorbing AI startups gets much harder, and common shareholders could gain leverage.
What to do: If you hold common stock or options at a startup, understand how a license and hire deal could affect you.
Not confirmed yet: These are allegations. Groq and Nvidia hadn't responded in the reports.
Sources: Full stories and sources

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