Google To Aquire Cybersecurity StartUp Wiz For $23 Billion - 1

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Google To Aquire Cybersecurity StartUp Wiz For $23 Billion

  • Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
  • Fact-Checked by Justyn Newman Former Lead Cybersecurity Editor

Alphabet, Google’s parent company, has moved forward in discussions to acquire Wiz, a cybersecurity startup, for around $23 billion. According to Reuters , yesterday an anonymous source familiar with the matter provided more details on the negotiation.

If Alphabet buys Wiz for that amount, it would become the company’s largest acquisition ever. The deal will be funded mostly in cash—according to the source— and will be happening soon.

The decision to buy Wiz may incur disputes with the U.S. government as regulators across the country—under Joe Biden’s administration—have previously acted against large tech companies acquiring big companies by blocking these kinds of deals. And it could happen again.

Google and Wiz haven’t shared public statements regarding the new deal, but, as explained by sources, both companies are committed to moving forward.

According to the New York Times , Google has previously been sued by the Justice Department in two cases and the verdict should be shared in the following days.

Google has been working on strategies to diversify revenues, but most of it still comes from online advertising on its platforms. “Buying Wiz would not move the needle overnight, but would forge a connection between Google Cloud and companies that use Wiz to safeguard data held in AWS, Azure, and other cloud computing systems,” wrote The New York Times.

Google’s last big acquisition was FitBit, the fitness tracker company, a deal for $2.1 billion in 2021 that also faced regulatory scrutiny from American regulators, but it was later approved.

The tech Giant has been working on multiple projects this year. Just a few weeks ago, Google announced a partnership with the augmented reality startup Magic Leap to provide new solutions for the AR Market.

OpenAI’s Secret “Strawberry” Project Aims to Increase AI Reasoning Abilities - 2

OpenAI’s Secret “Strawberry” Project Aims to Increase AI Reasoning Abilities

  • Written by Shipra Sanganeria Cybersecurity & Tech Writer
  • Fact-Checked by Justyn Newman Former Lead Cybersecurity Editor

OpenAI is reportedly working on a new advanced reasoning technology for its AI models, under a project, code-named, ‘’Strawberry,’’ reported Reuters last week.

Reuters, citing company’s internal documents and a knowledgeable source, reported that the project, a well-kept secret even within OpenAI, aims to empower its AI models to autonomously navigate the internet and conduct “deep research.” According to these documents, the ongoing project will involve not only generating answers for queries but also planning and executing complex tasks.

The internal document detailing the company’s usage plan for Strawberry was reviewed by the news agency in May of this year. Although Reuters could not ascertain the document’s exact date or how close the project is to public release, a source described the project as a work in progress.

Sources familiar with the matter suggest that by enhancing AI with advanced reasoning capabilities, OpenAI seeks to equip its models with skills that traditionally challenge AI systems, such as common-sense tasks and intuitive logical reasoning, abilities humans possess effortlessly.

When questioned about Project Strawberry, a OpenAI spokesperson, without directly addressing specifics of the project, said, “We aim for our AI models to perceive and comprehend the world more akin to human understanding. Ongoing research into new AI capabilities is standard in the industry, driven by the belief that these systems will evolve in reasoning abilities over time.”

For now, many aspects of project Strawberry remain undisclosed — including its development progress, and whether it’s the same project with “human-like reasoning” skills that OpenAI demonstrated at an internal meeting last week, per Bloomberg .

However, per Reuters, sources acquainted with the project revealed that Strawberry, formerly known as Q* , has demonstrated the ability to address difficult science and math questions beyond the capabilities of existing commercial-AI models.

As AI technology advances, the development of reasoning skills is seen as key for current large language models to develop human-like capabilities, leading to significant progress across various domains.