Google Eyes Cybersecurity Startup Wiz in Potential $30 Billion Deal

Google parent Alphabet is in advanced talks to acquire cybersecurity startup Wiz for approximately $30 billion. Sources familiar with the matter told the Wall Street Journal that a deal, which would be Google's largest acquisition to date, could materialize soon, pending the resolution of last-minute complications that previously derailed an earlier attempt.

The Wall Street Journal reported last summer that Alphabet was close to a deal for Wiz worth around $23 billion. However, the talks broke down due to concerns from Wiz and some investors regarding the timeline for clearing regulatory hurdles, among other issues.

The potential acquisition would bolster Alphabet's cloud computing business, where it lags behind competitors. The WSJ reports that Wiz's security features could attract more customers to Google's cloud service in a competitive market fueled by generative AI companies' computing power needs.

The acquisition of Wiz would dwarf Google's previous largest acquisition, the $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility in 2012. The WSJ notes that the deal will test regulators' willingness to approve the deal, especially as Google navigates two antitrust lawsuits, one of which resulted in a ruling that it is a monopoly.

Wiz, founded in 2020 by CEO Assaf Rappaport and colleagues, has experienced rapid growth, with its valuation reaching $16 billion in a late-last-year employee tender offer, according to the Journal. The company, backed by venture capital firms like Sequoia Capital and Andreessen Horowitz, had considered an IPO, but resumed deal conversations due to quiet IPO markets, the WSJ reports.

The Wall Street Journal previously reported that a key sticking point in earlier deal negotiations was whether Wiz would operate as a separate unit within Google or be integrated into its cloud-computing business.