Good morning. M&A made a comeback this year, but growth is lagging in the middle market.
PwC’s U.S. Deals 2026 Outlook, released this morning, credits the AI boom and a revitalized private equity (PE) activity for the market achieving 10,333 deals worth $1.6 trillion through Nov. 30, 2025. Total deal value rose about 45% from last year and was the second-highest ever recorded, even amid major shifts in economic policy, such as tariffs.
Courtesy of PwC
Big bets on AI helped drive activity among tech companies—especially in megadeals. There were 74 megadeals (valued at $5 billion or more), the highest number since 2021, of which more than 20% were driven by AI.
Fortune has reported on several megadeals this year, including Alphabet agreeing to acquire cloud security and AI company Wiz for about $32 billion; Meta buying a 49% stake in Scale AI for roughly $14 billion; and CoreWeave acquiring Core Scientific for about $9 billion.
