Google’s potential acquisition of Israeli cybersecurity startup Wiz for $23 billion has fallen through, with Wiz CEO Assaf Rappaport announcing the decision to reject the offer. Rappaport stated that he made this “tough” choice to focus on growing Wiz towards its aim of achieving $1 billion in annual revenue and preparing for an initial public offering.
The acquisition would have significantly strengthened Google’s cybersecurity portfolio, especially following a major outage last week that affected the industry, primarily attributed to CrowdStrike, a leading cybersecurity firm. According to Wedbush analyst Dan Ives, investor apprehensions and ongoing antitrust concerns were instrumental in the deal’s collapse. Google has faced rigorous antitrust scrutiny recently and recently completed a major trial instigated by the Department of Justice.
Ives emphasized that the breakdown of this deal could have widespread effects across the technology sector. He predicts that Google will likely continue to invest in expanding its cybersecurity capabilities despite the setback with Wiz. Similarly, he anticipates that Microsoft will seek to enhance its cybersecurity platform in the next 12 to 18 months, as consolidation in the sector appears to be overdue.
Microsoft faced its own challenges recently when a significant global IT outage occurred due to a problematic update in CrowdStrike’s cybersecurity software. This incident, which led to user disruptions worldwide, highlighted the need for Microsoft to strengthen its cybersecurity measures, a need that may be exacerbated by Google’s unsuccessful acquisition of Wiz.