Google has announced its largest acquisition to date, an all-cash $32 billion agreement to acquire Wiz, a cloud security startup
If you ask Dave Gerry – the CEO of Bugcrowd, a crowdsourced security platform – the Google-Wiz deal was always going to happen!
“With upwards of more than 6,000 cyber vendors in the market, customers are looking to consolidate their security spend to vendors they trust,” says Gerry. “While many hoped that 2025 would be the Year of the IPO, this deal may be a bellwether signalling other large-scale M&A activity.”
Google has acquired Wiz, a cloud security startup, in a deal worth a whopping 32 billion dollars. The move is a masterstroke on Google’s part as it will bolster its Cloud offerings and also help it compete better in the multi-cloud security space.
Google’s Vision for the Future
The acquisition of Wiz 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).
Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, highlighted the significance of integrating Wiz’s capabilities into Google Cloud: “Today, businesses and governments that run in the cloud are looking for even stronger security solutions, and greater choice in cloud computing providers. Together, Google Cloud and Wiz will turbocharge improved cloud security and the ability to use multiple clouds.”
Unlike regular acquisitions where companies get folded into a single ecosystem, Google will ensure that Wiz is available across AWS, Azure and other cloud providers, thereby ensuring multicloud flexibility.
What is Wiz?
Wiz was founded by a team of former Microsoft and Israeli intelligence experts in 2020. In the last 5 years, it has rapidly established itself as a leader as far as cloud security is concerned. The company provides detailed security insights and scans data across cloud environments and detects vulnerabilities before they turn into threats.
Its monetary growth has also been remarkable, with $500 million in annual recurring revenue. According to projections, it is likely to hit $1 billion in 2025.
What Industry Experts have to Say
According to Eric Schwake – Director of Cybersecurity Strategy at Salt Security – the deal comes with both benefits and risks.
“Google’s acquisition of Wiz presents several advantages, particularly an improved security platform for Google Cloud clients, featuring integrated functionalities and ongoing multi-cloud support that may foster innovation,” Schwake said. “However, drawbacks include diminished competition, concerns regarding vendor lock-in, and heightened data privacy issues.”
Kaushik Devireddy, Senior Product Manager at Deepwatch, raised concerns about whether Wiz will continue to maintain cloud neutrality.
“One of the primary tenets of Wiz is equally securing every cloud. With the acquisition folding into Google Cloud Platform (GCP), customers may become wary of whether cloud-equality will continue to hold up,” Devireddy said.
The Future of Cybersecurity
The cybersecurity landscape is entering a new era. Consolidation, AI-driven defence strategies and dominance in multi-cloud security will be the defining parameters of this phase.
With Google’s acquisition of Wiz, several enterprises stand to benefit but the reality is also that fewer players will now control more of the ecosystem. With AWS, Microsoft and Oracle mulling their next moves, the industry could be all set for a streak of major deals and acquisitions.
There is likely to be intense competition in areas like AI-powered threat detection and API security.
The Last Word
This deal underlines a major industry trend: big tech consolidating cybersecurity powerhouses. Google’s previous security investments like Mandiant and Siemplify have strengthened its standing as a cloud security giant. But with Wiz, it has taken an exponential leap to the front of the line.
Whether Google is able to uphold its promise of ensuring Wiz’s multicloud availability remains to be seen. Whether AWS and Azure are able to maintain their collaboration with Wiz under Google’s ownership is also something else to watch out for.
But one thing is for certain: cybersecurity’s future is being rewritten in real-time!
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