Google's most expensive buy: Alphabet to acquire Wiz for record $32 bn

Google parent Alphabet on Tuesday said it would buy cloud security platform Wiz for $32 billion in its biggest deal in its 25 year-history to turbocharge its cloud security strategy to take on giants like Amazon.com and Microsoft.

The acquisition price for Wiz is much higher than around $23 billion offered by Google last year as the Assaf Rappaport-led company shelved the plans amid anti-trust worries. Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google, says today, businesses and governments that run in the cloud are looking for 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.”

Google says this acquisition will accelerate Google Cloud's journey to scale two large and growing trends in the AI era: improved cloud security and the ability to use multiple clouds (multi-cloud).

"Both cybersecurity and cloud computing are rapidly growing industries with a vast range of solutions. The increased role of AI, and adoption of cloud services, have dramatically changed the security landscape for customers, making cybersecurity increasingly important in defending against emergent risks and protecting national security," Google says in a blog post.

Google Cloud and Wiz share a joint vision to make cybersecurity more accessible and simpler to use for organisations of any size and industry, says Thomas Kurian, CEO, Google Cloud. "Enabling more companies to prevent cyber attacks, including in very complex business software environments, will help organizations minimize the cost, disruption and hassle caused by cybersecurity incidents.”

Wiz connects to all major clouds and code environments to help prevent cybersecurity incidents. Organisations of all sizes — from start-ups and large enterprises to governments and public sector organisations — can use it to protect everything they build and run in the cloud.

Speaking on the acquisition, Assaf Rappaport, Co-Founder & CEO, Wiz, says this is an exciting moment for the company. "..but an even more important one for customers and partners, as this acquisition will bolster our mission to improve security and prevent breaches by providing additional resources and deep AI expertise.”

Google says in the past 12 months, Wiz has delivered new categories of cybersecurity solutions.

The acquisition deal complements Google Cloud service, which is among the major players in cloud infrastructure, with deep AI expertise.

With Wiz, Google and Google Cloud aim to provide an end-to-end security platform for customers of all types and sizes; lower customers’ cost of implementing and managing security controls; protect against new threats emerging due to the advancement of AI, prevent breaches, and help organisations respond to breaches much more efficiently; boost the adoption of multi-cloud security and, as a result, customers’ ability to use multiple clouds; and further spur innovation in and the adoption of cloud computing.

The company says Wiz’s products will continue to be available across all major clouds, including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure, and Oracle Cloud platforms. Google Cloud will also continue to operate via the Google Cloud Marketplace.

The deal is subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals.