By Marissa Newman and Andrew Martin March 19, 2025 — 8.01am
Last year, investors persuaded the founders of cyber startup Wiz to turn down Google’s $US23 billion ($36.2 billion) takeover offer. They feared the US government would block the deal and argued that Wiz was better off as an independent company.
On Tuesday, Wiz’s founders said they’d changed their minds.
Wiz CEO Assaf Rappaport and the company’s co-founders Yinon Costica, Ami Luttwak and Roy Reznik met at Talpiot, an elite military academy. Credit: Getty Images
It didn’t hurt that Google parent Alphabet sweetened the offer to $US32 billion ($50 billion) in cash — a handsome price for a company that set up shop in Tel Aviv just five years ago. The companies, which expect the deal to close next year, are betting on a friendlier regulatory environment under President Donald Trump — although hurdles remain.
Wiz will be folded into Google Cloud and could help the search giant gain market share in the fiercely contested cloud security industry.
The deal came together quickly, with the first meeting held in New York a week and a half ago, according to a person familiar with the matter. The terms built on the foundation established last year.
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Wiz debated whether to accept the Google proposal or move forward with a planned funding round this year for about $US1 billion, at a roughly $US25 billion valuation. But the startup opted to proceed owing to the bigger offer, the change in the regulatory landscape under Trump and an opportunity to accelerate efforts to build the world’s largest cybersecurity company, the person said. Microsoft is currently the biggest.
Founded by four Israeli mi
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