Google signs historic $32 billion deal for cybersecurity startup

Google has completed its $32 billion acquisition of cybersecurity startup Wiz, marking the largest acquisition in the company’s history.

The deal is also the largest exit for a venture-backed startup.

This underscores the growing importance of cloud security as the adoption of artificial intelligence accelerates and companies move more of their operations to cloud-based infrastructure.

Wiz, founded in 2020 by Israeli entrepreneurs Assaf Rappaport, Ami Luttwak, Roy Reznik, and Yinon Costica, has quickly emerged as one of the world’s fastest-growing cybersecurity companies.

The company develops software that helps businesses detect vulnerabilities and security risks across major cloud platforms, including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud.

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Speaking on TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, Shardul Shah, partner at venture capital firm Index Ventures—Wiz’s largest shareholder—described the acquisition as one of the most significant deals to happen in the tech industry in years.

“I think this should qualify as the deal of the year or the decade, not just the deal of the week,” Shah said.

“This is the largest venture-backed acquisition in history.”

According to him, Wiz is at the intersection of three major forces driving technology investment: artificial intelligence, cloud computing and cybersecurity spending.

“Wiz is at the center of three drivers: AI, cloud and security spending,” he said.

The acquisition is expected to strengthen Google Cloud’s security capabilities as the company competes with rivals Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure in the fast-growing cloud market.