Google owner Alphabet is in advanced discussions to buy fast-growing cybersecurity startup Wiz for roughly $23 billion, a person familiar with the matter confirmed to CNN.
A takeover of Wiz, which makes cybersecurity software for cloud computing, would represent a major bet by Google on cybersecurity, marking the tech giant’s biggest-ever acquisition.
Discussions between Google and Wiz began after the startup raised $1 billion from venture capital investors earlier this year, the source said.
Terms of a potential deal have not been finalized and talks could still collapse, according to the source.
News of the Google-Wiz talks was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Neither Google nor Wiz returned CNN’s requests for comment.
The deal would easily surpass Google’s purchase of Motorola for $12.5 billion about a decade ago, the biggest takeover in company history. Google offloaded Motorola just two years later for a massive loss.
A $23 billion price tag on Wiz is nearly double the $12 billion valuation of the startup from its most recent round of funding.
In March 2022, Alphabet bought cybersecurity firm Mandiant for $5.4 billion as part of its efforts to help companies better address cyber threats and bolster its cloud computing business.