Google to Acquire Cloud Security Startup Wiz for Record-Breaking $32 Billion
- Sara Montes de Oca
- Mar 18
- 2 min read
Updated: Mar 19
Google announced on Tuesday that it has reached a definitive agreement to acquire the New York-based cloud security startup Wiz for $32 billion in an all-cash transaction. This acquisition will be the largest in Google's history, surpassing its previous largest purchase—the $12.5 billion acquisition of hardware manufacturer Motorola in 2012.
With this deal, Wiz will become a part of Google's cloud division, significantly bolstering Google's security offerings in response to growing cybersecurity threats and rapid advancements in artificial intelligence. Google expects the acquisition to be completed by 2026.
"Google Cloud is a leader in cloud infrastructure, with deep AI expertise and a track record of industry-leading security innovation," the company stated. "Bringing all this to Wiz will help make their solutions even better and more scalable, benefiting customers and partners across all major clouds."
The deal marks a significant turnaround from last July, when Wiz reportedly walked away from a $23 billion acquisition offer from Google, opting instead to pursue an initial public offering. At that time, Wiz co-founder Assaf Rappaport explained the decision in an internal memo, emphasizing the company's ambitions to reach $1 billion in annual recurring revenue and eventually go public.
Wiz was founded in 2020 and experienced rapid growth, reaching $100 million in annual recurring revenue within its first 18 months. Wiz specializes in cloud security products focused on threat prevention, detection, and response, making it an attractive acquisition target to help Google better compete against rivals such as Microsoft.
"Becoming part of Google Cloud is effectively strapping a rocket to our backs," Rappaport said in a blog post following the announcement. "It will accelerate our rate of innovation faster than what we could achieve as a standalone company."
Despite the acquisition, Wiz products will continue to support competitor cloud platforms, including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle Cloud. The potential acquisition discussions were initially reported by The Wall Street Journal on Monday.
The agreement could face regulatory scrutiny; however, Wall Street analysts have indicated optimism that President Donald Trump's administration may adopt a more permissive stance toward tech mergers and acquisitions. Alphabet, Google's parent company, is currently navigating an antitrust lawsuit over its dominance in online search.
