Google in Advanced Talks to Acquire Cybersecurity Startup Wiz for $30 Billion:

Alphabet, Google’s parent company, is reportedly working on acquiring cloud cybersecurity startup Wiz for $30 billion, as stated in an article by The Wall Street Journal. Earlier, Google had tried to acquire Wiz, but the two firms could not come to a consensus on a $23 billion valuation.

Acquisition efforts are spearheaded by Thomas Kurian, president of Google Cloud, who views Wiz’s cloud security solutions as highly strategic. Wiz’s impressive revenue growth has also been well reported, including an annual recurring revenue of $500 million in July 2023 with an anticipated increase to $1 billion ARR in 2025.

Acquiring Wiz at $30 billion would be an aggressive move, considering its rising valuation, but not out of reach. The firm was last valued at $12 billion after receiving external funding of $1 billion in May 2023, later increasing to $16 billion in an employee tender offer.

Publicly, neither Google nor Wiz have issued a statement regarding the suspected acquisition.

Why did Google fail to acquire Wiz in 2024?

One of the primary obstacles of discussion in earlier rounds was pertaining to whether Wiz would utilize fully Google Cloud resources or will work separately. Assaf Rappaport, cofounder and CEO of Wiz later shared reasons why the company did not accept the Google offer. He labeled it, the “toughest decision ever” while saying he rationally wished to scale the company himself.

Increased skepticism regarding regulations for some antitrust issues within the Biden government also caused the suspension of the deal.

Wiz, which launched in 2020 with the aid of ex Israeli soldiers, has gained significant recognition in the field of cloud security. The company is funded by major names such as Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia, Index Ventures and Insight Partners.