Bending Spoons Acquires Airtable: How to future-proof your setup

On August 4, 2026, Bending Spoons agreed to buy Airtable for $1.285 billion. If your business runs on Airtable, this week’s acquisition probably made you wonder: should I be worried, and… what happens next?

The short answer is, Airtable will continue as it is for the next while, probably a long while… However, will Airtable still keep up with where your business is going two or three years from now? That's the uncertainty every acquisition introduces.

It's worth taking ten minutes to separate what changes today from what might change later, and what you can do about it either way.

If your team relies on Airtable to run important parts of your business (whether that’s internal operations, customer portals, partner workflows, or client delivery) this article is for you.

TL;DR

• Bending Spoons agreed to acquire Airtable for $1.285 billion on August 4, 2026 (Inc, 2026).
• Nothing changes in your Airtable account today. Your Airtable base, automations, and integrations aren't going to stop working overnight
• Bending Spoons’ past acquisitions have often been followed by leaner teams and pricing changes: Evernote's Pro plan rose from $37 a year to $250 a year after its 2022 acquisition, and WeTransfer lost 75% of its staff within two months of being bought in 2024.
• Many businesses are reducing their dependency on Airtable's roadmap by treating it as the database beneath a system designed around how they actually work.
• This is a good moment to check how dependent your business is on Airtable today and understand your options.

What did Bending Spoons actually agree to buy?

Bending Spoons signed a deal to acquire 100% of Airtable's shares for an enterprise value of $1.285 billion, with an equity value of roughly $2.25 billion once Airtable's cash reserves are counted in. The deal was announced on August 4, 2026, and is expected to close later in the year, subject to regulatory approval (Bending Spoons investor newsroom, 2026).

Airtable was valued at $11 billion in a 2021 funding round, so this deal values the company at a fraction of its old price tag (Inc, 2026). Airtable still serves more than 500,000 organizations, including 80% of the Fortune 100, and both companies say they'll operate separately until the deal closes (Bending Spoons investor newsroom, 2026).

Bending Spoons CEO Luca Ferrari said the company is "committed to investing in Airtable for the long run." Airtable co-founder and CEO Howie Liu framed the deal as giving Airtable "the resources and the long-term commitment" to keep building (Bending Spoons investor newsroom, 2026).

What does Bending Spoons usually do after it buys a company?

Bending Spoons has consistently run leaner businesses after acquisitions. That doesn't mean Airtable will stop working or that investment will disappear overnight. It does, however, raise reasonable questions about how quickly the product will evolve from here.

Bending Spoons is an Italian software company that has built its business by buying established consumer and productivity apps and running them with far smaller teams. As of 2025, the company generated $1.31 billion in revenue with around 620 employees across a portfolio serving more than 500 million monthly users (TechCrunch, 2026).

Its revenue per employee jumped from $1.12 million in 2023 to $2.57 million in 2025, which gives a sense of how the company runs its products after buying them: fewer people, more automation, and pricing that gets revisited (TechCrunch, 2026). Here's what that looked like for three products it has bought in the past four years.

Will your Airtable base actually stop working?

Since the news broke, I’ve been fielding questions from customers about what this means for their Airtable setups. I’ve watched Airtable evolve since Noloco was founded. Back then, it was a fancy spreadsheet that many power users had already outgrown. Today, it’s become a critical part of how thousands of businesses operate.

This acquisition is a real vote of confidence in how far Airtable has come, but it also raises a fair question: what happens next?

The deal hasn't closed yet, Airtable and Bending Spoons are still operating as separate companies, and Bending Spoons' own statement commits to continued investment.

My view is: your bases, views, automations, and integrations will keep working, but  they might not keep up. That's the practical risk worth planning for: not a shutdown, but a slower pace of new features and support while a new owner defines the product’s next chapter and pricing.

How do you stop one company's ownership change from becoming your business problem?

The businesses least affected by news like this are the ones that separate where their data lives from how people actually use it. Airtable can remain the database, while the experience your employees, customers, or partners rely on continues to evolve independently of Airtable's roadmap.

That's why many businesses are moving away from building their operations inside Airtable, and instead using Airtable as the data layer beneath a system designed around how they actually work.

And that's exactly why many teams use Noloco: not to replace Airtable, but to give their employees, customers, and partners a better way to work with the data already stored there.

It also solves a problem that predates this acquisition: the "key person trap”, where one person holds the whole setup in their head and every change depends on them.

Should you add a layer on top of Airtable, or move beyond it?

Whether Bending Spoons changes Airtable or not isn't really the point. Every business eventually outgrows some of the software it depends on. The important thing is building your operations so changing a database, pricing model, or vendor doesn't mean rebuilding how your people work.

The right answer depends on what's actually causing you pain today.

In Noloco's own conversion data, many businesses we work with reach the same tipping point: Airtable becomes more expensive to scale, Interfaces multiply, and teams start looking for better ways to run day-to-day operations.

If you're still not sure which approach makes sense, it helps to see what it looks like in practice. Red Rock Entertainment kept Airtable as the foundation of its operations while using Noloco to build a better experience for users, cutting software costs by around 60% in the process.

Or you can start with what Airtable Interfaces can and can't do and where Airtable's pricing tends to bite as you scale. Both are common triggers for businesses that decide to add a layer or consolidate.

What should you actually do in the next 90 days?

Don't start planning a migration. Start by understanding how dependent your business is on Airtable today. Ask yourself four questions:

• If Airtable doubled in price next year, what would actually change for your business? Would you absorb the cost, limit access for users, or start looking for alternatives?
• Who relies on Airtable every day? List every employee, customer, or partner who works directly inside Airtable today. Which workflows would be most affected if Airtable's roadmap slowed down?
• How much of your business depends on Airtable filling product gaps? If you're already relying on Airtable extensions or several linked Interfaces to patch gaps, that’s often a sign you've outgrown using Airtable as the place where your business runs, not just where data lives.

None of this requires an immediate decision. They simply help you understand how much control you have before circumstances force your hand.

Final thoughts

Whether Bending Spoons changes Airtable dramatically or hardly at all isn't really the point. The businesses that weather changes like this best are the ones that aren't tied to a single vendor's roadmap, pricing, or priorities.

For many teams, that means keeping Airtable as the database while building the experience people actually use somewhere that's easier to evolve. That's exactly why many businesses use Noloco: not to replace Airtable, but to make sure the way they work isn't defined by one product's roadmap.

Nothing changes overnight. But if this acquisition has prompted you to ask whether your current setup will still support your business in three years' time, it's probably a conversation worth having now, not after your options become more limited.

If you're wondering whether your Airtable setup is future-proof, I'd be happy to help over a quick call. We can look at your current setup, talk through your options, and show you how businesses use Noloco alongside (or instead of) Airtable as they grow.

FAQ

Will my Airtable base stop working now that Bending Spoons is buying Airtable?
No. Airtable continues to operate as normal while the acquisition moves through the approval process, and Bending Spoons has said it plans to keep investing in the product. Your bases, automations, integrations, and apps built on top of Airtable continue to work as they do today.

Should Airtable customers be worried about the acquisition?

Not immediately. Nothing changes for Airtable customers today. The bigger question isn't whether Airtable will keep working—it's how the product, pricing, and roadmap might evolve over the next few years. That's why many businesses are reviewing how dependent they are on Airtable for day-to-day operations.

When will the Bending Spoons acquisition of Airtable close?
The acquisition was announced on August 4, 2026, and is expected to close later in 2026, subject to regulatory approval. Until then, Airtable and Bending Spoons continue to operate as separate companies.

What has Bending Spoons done with other software companies it has bought?
Bending Spoons has a track record of running leaner businesses after acquisitions, often reducing headcount and revisiting pricing over time. For example, Evernote's Pro plan increased significantly following its acquisition, while WeTransfer reduced its workforce shortly after the deal closed. That doesn't mean the same will happen to Airtable, but it helps explain why customers are asking what comes next.

Can I keep using my Airtable base if I add a tool on top of it, like Noloco?
Yes. Many businesses continue using Airtable as their database while giving employees, customers, or partners a different experience through tools like Noloco. Your data stays in Airtable, while the interface, permissions, and workflows can evolve independently of Airtable's own roadmap.

What's the difference between adding a layer on top of Airtable and migrating off it?
Building on top of Airtable means your data stays where it is while another platform provides the interface, workflows, permissions, and user experience. Migrating means moving both your data and your processes into another system. The right approach depends on whether Airtable is still the right database for your business or whether you've outgrown it altogether.

How much does Airtable cost today, and could pricing change under new ownership?
Nothing has changed today. Airtable's current plans and pricing remain the same. However, pricing changes have followed several previous Bending Spoons acquisitions, which is one reason many businesses are reviewing how dependent they are on Airtable before the acquisition closes. See our full breakdown of Airtable's pricing tiers. It's worth reviewing your plan and usage now. See a full breakdown of Airtable's pricing tiers.

Should I move away from Airtable because of this acquisition?

Not necessarily. For many businesses, Airtable remains an excellent database. The more important question is whether your day-to-day operations depend entirely on Airtable's product roadmap, pricing, and interface. Many growing businesses choose to keep Airtable as their data layer while building the experience their employees, customers, or partners use in a platform like Noloco. Others eventually migrate completely as their needs evolve.

Related resources

• How RedRock cut software costs by 60% with Noloco and Airtable
• Airtable Interfaces in 2026: what they can't do and the best alternative
• Airtable pricing 2026: plans, hidden costs, and the best frontend for portals
• Top 10 Airtable extensions
• Airtable client portal: secure permissions and security guide