SAP announced its plan to acquire German artificial intelligence startup Prior Labs and invest €1 billion over the next four years to establish an AI lab focused on structured data. The transaction, pending regulatory approval, is expected to be completed in an “almost all-cash” manner, with Prior Labs' founding team receiving over $500 million in cash. Founded just 18 months ago, Prior Labs specializes in developing table-based models, which may better align with SAP's business needs. Amid the industry's shift toward intelligent agent technology, SAP has taken defensive measures by banning unauthorized AI agents from accessing its products, allowing only “SAP-endorsed architectures” to connect. SAP's CFO stated that AI represents both a threat and an opportunity. Previously, SAP has invested in several generative AI companies and developed the SAP-RPT-1 model. The acquisition of Prior Labs will provide strong support for SAP, particularly as its TabPFN model series has received positive feedback, with SAP committing to maintaining the independence of its open-source versions. Notably, SAP adopts a strict approach in selecting agent technologies, differing from its competitor Salesforce.