Market

Which AI data buyers deal with closed or distressed companies

A bankrupt or closed company can still license its email, chat and files to AI buyers. Fewer buyers accept closed companies than accept operating ones.

Here is who they are, what they ask for and how to choose.

AI Data Offers research deskChecked against our methodology Updated October 28, 2026 2 min read 10 sources

In this guide

Wind-down channels

[Pewter](/sell-your-data/buyers/pewter): takes US firms of any operating status with 20+ staff and 3+ years of records. It warns that archives can be deleted when firms wind down, puts the owner's time at about an hour and says owners pay no fee.
[SimpleClosure](/sell-your-data/buyers/simpleclosure): a shutdown service that sells leftover assets on AssetHub. It counts 150+ data deals for startups that wound down, mostly $10K to $100K each, and says personal details are removed from every dataset before it is licensed.
[Sunset](/sell-your-data/buyers/sunset): per MIT Technology Review, it prices a closing company's assets on staff count, years trading, data volume and how intensively the team used its software.

Brokers

License My Data says it takes on closed companies that peaked at 50+ staff and shares commission deal by deal. It markets to the people who run insolvencies, such as trustees, liquidators and the lawyers who advise them. Broker fees are covered in AI data brokers.

Direct buyers

Starting 2026-10-09, micro1 ran ads on Meta and LinkedIn aimed at people who used to run a company that has since stopped trading, with a headline saying the data might be worth as much as $2M. The target is US companies that peaked at 25+ staff. The number is micro1's own.

Per MIT Technology Review, Mercor has gone looking for the Slack and Jira archives of startups that closed, and it holds the $7.5M backup position for Spirit's records. Google won Spirit's court auction at $10.0M.

Which channel fits which company

Small startup, under 20 staff at peak
SimpleClosure or Sunset, in the $10K to $100K range
20 to 50 staff at peak, 3+ years of records
Pewter, micro1 (25+ for closed companies), Mercor
50+ staff at peak
Add License My Data and a multi-buyer process
Large estate in court
A section 363 auction, as with Spirit

Your situation	Likely fit
Small startup, under 20 staff at peak	SimpleClosure or Sunset, in the $10K to $100K range
20 to 50 staff at peak, 3+ years of records	Pewter, micro1 (25+ for closed companies), Mercor
50+ staff at peak	Add License My Data and a multi-buyer process
Large estate in court	A section 363 auction, as with Spirit

The match quiz sorts these by your size and status.

FAQ

Questions, answered

Which AI companies buy data from closed companies?

Shutdown services like SimpleClosure and Sunset; buyers open to closed companies like Pewter, micro1 and Mercor; brokers like License My Data; and, inside a court sale, bidders such as Google in the Spirit case.

Is there a minimum size?

That varies by buyer. Most of those open to closed companies look for 20+ employees at the high point and several years of data.

Does micro1 buy from closed companies?

From 2026-10-09 its ads have called on people who ran US companies that closed after peaking at 25+ staff, claiming the data might be worth as much as $2M.

How does SimpleClosure handle personal details?

SimpleClosure says every dataset is stripped of personal details, including sensitive information and credentials, before it is licensed.

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Sources

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