- Alphabet is close to a deal to buy cybersecurity startup Wiz for $23 billion, according to the WSJ.
- Multiple sources told The Wall Street Journal that the tech giant is in advanced talks to buy the startup.
- Wiz was founded in 2020 and became one of the fastest growing startups a year later.
Alphabet’s Google is close to a deal to buy Wiz, a four-year-old cloud-based cybersecurity startup, for about $23 billion, sources familiar with the talks told The Wall Street Journal.
The sources said the search engine giant is in advanced talks to buy the company, and a deal is imminent, assuming the talks don’t fall through.
According to The New York Times, Wiz would be Google’s biggest acquisition ever if the purchase goes through.
Spokespeople for Google and Wiz did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Founded in March 2020, Wiz is a startup that offers security for companies that utilize cloud storage providers like Amazon Web Services.
In less than a year, the startup was valued at $1.7 billion and quickly secured investments from Salesforce, Blackstone, and Algae, making Wiz one of the fastest-growing startups at the time, Business Insider previously reported.
However, Alphabet’s potential acquisition of Wiz comes at a time of heightened antitrust scrutiny from the Biden administration.
The Justice Department sued Google in 2020, accusing the search giant of monopolizing the search engine. A verdict in the years-long and historic trial is expected later this year.
