Alphabet has agreed to acquire Wiz for $32 billion in an all-cash deal, marking its largest acquisition to date and a significant boost to its cloud security capabilities. This price is higher than the roughly $23 billion Google had initially offered last year before antitrust concerns caused the startup to shelve the deal. The acquisition will enhance Google’s cloud business with Wiz’s AI-powered cybersecurity solutions, aiding its competitive position in an industry influenced by the rise of generative AI services like ChatGPT. A challenging regulatory environment in 2024 made large deals difficult for many firms, but Wall Street anticipates that the Trump administration might drop some antitrust policies. Wiz, one of the fastest-growing software startups, offers cloud-based cybersecurity solutions and was valued at $12 billion in a funding round last May. Following the collapse of the Google deal, Wiz focused on an initial public offering and increasing recurring revenue. This acquisition is another step by Google to strengthen its cybersecurity offerings; in 2022, it acquired Mandiant for $5.4 billion, outbidding Microsoft. Shares of Google were slightly down in premarket trading. The stock rose about 35% last year but has lost 13% this year due to investor concerns over its significant AI investments following the launch of lower-cost DeepSeek. Alphabet expects the deal to close in 2026, after which Wiz will join Google’s cloud unit while maintaining product availability across other major cloud services. — news from Reuters
