Herzog speaks to Wiz CEO after $32b purchase by Google

“You are bringing immense pride to the State of Israel. This is an unimaginable achievement that showcases Israeli ingenuity, the tremendous capabilities of Israeli high-tech, the strength of Israel’s economy and our resilience as a nation—especially in a year like this,” said Herzog during the call.

“This is incredible news for the country, making waves worldwide. I have deep appreciation for you, your team and, of course, the investors, entrepreneurs and developers. Thank you all—I salute you,” he added.

Google parent company Alphabet on Tuesday confirmed its acquisition of the Israeli cloud security firm, making it the tech giant’s largest deal to date.

The move aims to strengthen Google Cloud’s security offerings amid growing competition from AWS and Microsoft.

Founded in 2020, Wiz has rapidly expanded, generating $500 million in annual recurring revenue and serving nearly half of the top 100 U.S. companies. Despite joining Google Cloud, Wiz’s security products will remain available on other platforms, including AWS and Azure.

The deal is subject to regulatory approval, and experts anticipate potential antitrust scrutiny before finalization later this year.

Talks on what was originally supposed to be a $23 billion deal reportedly fell apart in July 2024.

“This is a moment of Israeli pride and a significant statement of Google’s confidence in Israeli talent and the people of Israel—especially in these difficult times,” Rappaport told Herzog on Friday.

“This is not only one of Google’s biggest deals in history, but it’s also the largest private acquisition ever. We are embarking on a new and equally challenging journey. This is just a milestone toward something much greater, and it presents a tremendous opportunity for Israel to establish itself as a global cybersecurity hub,” he added.

Google has shown interest in the Israeli market, in 2013 purchasing Waze for $1.1 billion, creating the Jewish state’s first domestic unicorn (a startup reaching $1 billion in valuation without being listed on the stock market).

If completed, the deal would surpass Google’s previous biggest acquisition: the $12.5 billion purchase of Motorola Mobility in 2012.

While Wiz is headquartered in New York City, with nearly 1,000 employees scattered across North America and Europe, most of its engineering team is based in Tel Aviv, where the 41-year-old Rappaport was born.