Google in Advanced Talks to Acquire Wiz for $23 Billion

Google’s parent company, Alphabet, is reportedly in late-stage negotiations to purchase Wiz, a cybersecurity startup, for a staggering $23 billion, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, has captured significant attention in the tech world.

Negotiations kicked off a few weeks ago when Thomas Kurian, the CEO of Google Cloud, initiated contact with Wiz. Talks have moved quickly, leading to a tentative agreement on the purchase price. Despite the swift progress, several challenges remain, which could extend the negotiation period by a week or more.

Since its inception in 2020, Wiz has seen extraordinary growth. Wiz projects it will achieve $1 billion in ARR by next year. Wiz  customers include: Fox, IHG, Hearst, Slack, DocuSign, BMW, Colgate-Palmolive, LVMH and many more.

Although Wiz was preparing for a future public offering, it was not actively seeking buyers until Google expressed interest. The potential acquisition could provide significant revenue synergies, allowing Wiz to leverage Google’s extensive customer base for further growth.

Wiz's rapid ascent has attracted investment from prominent venture capital firms such as Andreessen Horowitz, Cyberstarts, Index Ventures, Insight Partners, and Sequoia. The successful acquisition would mark a significant development for both Wiz and Google Cloud, potentially transforming the cybersecurity sector.

Updated 7/23/24 11:00 AM EST (Follow recent updates  here).