Sure, and a counter-argument of the form "acquisitions from such valuation to such valuation were down such percent, we interviewed the following founders and these Corp Dev lawyers spoke on the condition of anonymity..." would be an interesting one. But AFAICT at everything but Goliath scale, M&A was actually up over the period.

So as usual here we are with the epic showdown of Data and Vibes...and in an obvious landslide Vibes takes it home.