Nudibranch

Nudibranchs are shell-less sea slugs, apparently vulnerable yet remarkably well-defended. Their secret: they eat cnidarians (anemones, hydroids) and somehow transport the unfired stinging cells (cnidocytes) to their own skin. These stolen weapons then fire at anything that touches the nudibranch. The slug defends itself with its prey's weapons - a biological arms acquisition program.

The mechanism is extraordinary. Cnidocytes are tiny harpoons that fire when touched. Nudibranchs eat these weapons, pass them through their gut without triggering them, and store them in specialized structures (cerata) on their backs. How they avoid triggering the stings during eating and transport remains partially mysterious. The result is a soft-bodied animal armored with its enemies' weapons.

For business, nudibranchs represent competitive strategies that acquire defensive capabilities from targets. When companies acquire smaller firms, they gain not just products but defensive assets - patents, customer relationships, regulatory approvals. The acquired company's 'weapons' become the acquirer's defense. Private equity firms that acquire multiple small companies create nudibranch-like portfolios of diverse defensive capabilities. The strategy requires the ability to acquire without triggering (not overpaying or destroying value) and successfully integrating the weapons into the new body.