While acquisitions that run tens of billions of dollars aren’t all that rare anymore, you can’t underestimate the importance of Google’s $32 billion purchase of cybersecurity vendor Wiz. The deal was important enough to Google that it substantially increased its offer after Wiz turned down a $23 billion offer last year.

Wiz grew at an amazing rate, reaching $500 million in annual recurring revenue in less than four years after its launch, and it’s projected to surpass $1 billion within the next year. It has $2 billion in funding with 20 investors contributing. Owning Wiz can make Google Cloud a dominant enterprise cybersecurity player.

The deal will also shake up partnerships across the cloud cyber landscape at a time when cloud marketplaces are heating up.

According to a LinkedIn post by Techaisle analyst Anurag Agrawal, the deal “underscores Google's commitment to strengthening its cloud security offerings to rival AWS and Microsoft. Wiz's platform, renowned for its seamless integration across multiple cloud providers like AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud, positions Google as a key player in securing today's heterogeneous cloud infrastructures.”

A blog by Canalys chief analyst Matthew Ball goes into greater detail about those partnerships and the Google-Wiz deal’s impact on relationships. Ball points out Wiz has close relationships with Google Cloud’s biggest hyperscale rivals – it was an AWS Marketplace Partner of the Year and Microsoft Commercial Marketplace Partner of the Year in 2024. Wiz gets most of its business through cloud marketplaces, and it benefitted from being able to sell across hyperscalers’ platforms.

“This dynamic will change once Wiz becomes part of Google Cloud, even though it has committed to remain a multi-cloud vendor,” Ball wrote. “Competitors are unlikely to continue offering the same level of investment and visibility to their partners and customers, as doing so would directly benefit a major rival in the cloud space. Wiz’s relationships with other cybersecurity vendors, such as Check Point, Cisco, CyberArk and Zscaler, are unlikely to be affected, as they will remain mutually beneficial.”

The deal also changes Google Cloud’s relationship with current cybersecurity vendor partners. “Competitive tensions will increase, especially in cloud security, which is a key growth area for both CrowdStrike and Palo Alto Networks, among others,” Ball wrote. “Managing these changes carefully will be vital to maintain strong alliances.”

Techailse’s Agrawal points out the deal also presents opportunities and challenges for MSPs and other service providers.

“The integration of Wiz's capabilities into Google Cloud creates new avenues for bundling security solutions with existing cloud services, enabling partners to offer more comprehensive and sophisticated offerings,” he wrote. “However, the evolution of Google's partner program and its approach to direct enterprise engagement will be crucial to monitor. Wiz's previous investments in its partner ecosystem, including tiered programs and expanded benefits, suggest a recognition of the channel's importance. The success of this acquisition will hinge on Google's ability to leverage Wiz's technology while nurturing its relationships with partners, ensuring they remain integral to delivering enhanced cloud security solutions in a multi-cloud world.”

Something else to keep an eye on: possible regulatory hurdles that still threaten the deal.