Alphabet buys cybersec firm Wiz in its biggest-ever purchase

Google’s parent company Alphabet has announced its largest-ever acquisition, buying cybersecurity firm Wiz for $32 billion.

Wiz, an Israeli cloud security startup headquartered in New York City, was founded in 2020 and works with giants such as Amazon or Microsoft to provide cloud-based cybersecurity solutions,

Essentially, the firm creates digital security tools designed to protect the information stored in remote data centers from intruders.

Alphabet has had its eyes on Wiz for quite some time but last year, negotiations over buying the startup at a lower $23 billion valuation stalled. Now, Wiz would become a part of Alphabet’s Google Cloud division.

“This acquisition represents an investment by Google Cloud to accelerate two large and growing trends in the AI era: improved cloud security and the ability to use multiple clouds (multicloud),” said Google in a blog post.

According to the tech giant, Wiz’s products will continue to work and be available across all major clouds, including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle Cloud platforms. They will be offered to customers through an array of partner security solutions.

“From its earliest days, Google’s strong security focus has made us a leader in keeping people safe online. Today, businesses and governments that run in the cloud are looking for even stronger security solutions, and greater choice in cloud computing providers,” said Google CEO Sundar Pichai.

“Together, Google Cloud and Wiz will turbocharge improved cloud security and the ability to use multiple clouds.”

There’s a catch, though. When talks between Alphabet and Wiz fell through last year, Financial Times reported that the startup was worried the deal would breach antitrust requirements. It remains to be seen whether this week’s announcement will face, as expected, less scrutiny.

Google has been splashing the cash for cybersecurity talent in recent years. In 2022, the tech corporation bought two cybersec firms – Mandiant and Siemplify – for $5.4 billion and $500 million, respectively.

$32 billion is, though, by far the largest acquisition the giant has ever made. Google paid $12.5 billion for Motorola Mobility in 2012.

Google also acquired YouTube in 2006 but only had to pay $1.65 billion for the platform. Today, YouTube generates $1.65 billion of revenue every 16 days and is estimated to be worth around $350 to $400 billion.