If it's legal, it means that somebody could write a model that could predict mergers pretty accurately and make a lot of money. For instance, by tracking flight patterns of C-suites executives, scanning car brands in parkings next to offices using satellite images, and analysing working hours of the staff (this can be done in multiple ways like sending e-mails to check of automated OOO responses or analysing the light coming out of the building from satellite images.)

You can buy the flight data right from Nasdaq if you want to: https://data.nasdaq.com/alternative-data/corporate-aviation-...

But if it's that easy that means other people are already doing it and you probably can't make any money.

Plenty of companies will help you monitor parking lots too: https://orbitalinsight.com/geospatial-solutions/financial-se..., https://rsmetrics.com/asset-tracker/

The general term for this stuff is "alternative data".

A version of this is already happening: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2019/05/stock-v...

I think some analysts have been doing flight analysis for a long time to help inform trades.

Everything you listed is publicly accessible knowledge (there is an interesting conversation over the fact that a poor person is unlikely to have the available means to attain this information) and I think should be fair game. But I really have not done the legal research to confidently give you a “Yes” and willfully will exit so I don’t get some SEC agent knocking on my door.

> by tracking flight patterns of C-suites executives, scanning car brands in parkings next to offices using satellite images

This was old enough to be the stuff of office legends fifteen years ago. (Also, flying drones to thermally image petroleum tankers to infer their levels.)

Hypothetically, if you assume somebody else will go through all that, wouldn't it be easier to acquire market data and follow unusual trades?

This happens already.