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For those following Israel’s high-tech sector, Google’s (Alphabet’s) announcement of its $32 billion acquisition of cybersecurity company Wiz was hardly a shock—perhaps only a mild surprise. Just days after previous negotiations between the companies collapsed over a $23 billion offer, this column noted: "It is no wonder Wiz rejected Alphabet’s inadequate offer... But sources close to the stalled talks insist the door has not yet been shut for good."
At the time, high-tech dealmaking experts scoffed. "Nonsense," they said. "The leaked price didn’t reflect Google’s real intentions, and Wiz let hubris get the better of them. Rejecting that offer—if there even was one—was a catastrophic mistake. End of story."
Yet Wiz’s technology—a revolutionary Israeli innovation—was always a perfect fit for a cloud giant like Google, and not just Google. Artificial intelligence applications, which rely on vast amounts of data stored in sprawling server farms known as the "cloud," require cybersecurity on an unprecedented scale—security that even the most advanced technology struggles to provide. Wiz was and remains the leader in this field. In that context, rejecting Google’s previous offer was entirely justified.
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Accepting the current deal—worth over 100 billion shekels—is not just a token of appreciation for the company's founders, employees and executives but Israel’s entire cybersecurity sector at large. If the acquisition goes through, it will mark a historic turning point for Israeli tech, strengthening its leadership in key fields such as cybersecurity, defense applications and machine learning.
A boost for Israel’s tech ecosystem
According to estimates by Israel’s National Economic Council, the country is home to hundreds of innovative startups, each valued in the tens of millions of dollars. The Wiz-Google deal provides these companies with an enormous creative and commercial boost. It elevates Israel into the ranks of the world’s leading tech corporations while simultaneously injecting billions into the local economy and creating thousands of new millionaires—and quite a few billionaires—not through inherited wealth, but through sheer ingenuity.
Sever PlockerPhoto: Yair SagiFor perspective: Wiz’s valuation alone is three times greater than that of Leviathan, Israel’s largest natural gas reservoir.
A cause for celebration—or concern?
The Wiz-Google deal (and much credit is due to Assaf Rappaport, Ami Luttwak, Yinon Costica and Roy Reznik—figures from within Israel’s high-tech camp) could be a cause for national celebration.
But that depends on one crucial factor: whether Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and his colleagues will allow the tax windfall and economic benefits to strengthen Israel’s tech-driven future—or whether they will divert these funds to satisfy coalition and ideological agendas. If they choose the latter, it would be a disaster.