Google’s $32 billion purchase of Israeli cloud security company Wiz is its most expensive ever acquisition
By Areeb Ullah, reposted from the Middle East Eye, March 20, 2025
Google employees and human rights groups have raised concerns about the tech giant’s purchase of an Israeli start-up in an unprecedented $32 billion deal.
Google on Tuesday announced the all-cash acquisition of Wiz, an Israeli cloud security firm which was founded by former members of Unit 8200, an elite Israeli army cyber-espionage and surveillance unit.
The deal comes with the Google already facing internal and external pressure over its controversial Project Nimbus contract, through which along with Amazon it provides cloud computing and AI services to the Israeli government and military.
A spokesperson for No Tech for Apartheid, a coalition of Google and Amazon workers campaigning against the companies’ involvement with Israel, said Google was “playing with fire” by buying Wiz.
“This acquisition marks a continuation of Google’s brazen support for the Israeli apartheid system,” a spokesperson told Middle East Eye.
“Instead of heeding workers’ calls to divest, Google is doubling down by investing in the colonial, racist, apartheid project of the so-called Israeli state. Google workers vehemently oppose this investment and continue to reject Project Nimbus.”
The spokesperson accused Google’s leadership of being “all too eager to establish the company as the backbone of the US-Israeli war machine” and described the acquisition of Wiz as a “performative overture” towards US President Donald Trump.
Google and Wiz have not responded to MEE’s request for comment at the time of writing.
Last year, Google fired dozens of employees after they staged a series of sit-in protests across the US to oppose Project Nimbus, including demonstrations in New York and at Google’s offices in Sunnyvale, California.
Insiders have said the dismissals had a chilling effect within Google, with many employees scaling back their protests.
Google previously tried to acquire Wiz last year but the company, which has offices in New York and Tel Aviv, turned down its then $23bn approach.
Wiz was co-founded in 2020 by the company’s current chief executive, Assaf Rappaport, and three other former members of Unit 8200 who Rappaport, 41, is reported to have met on his first day of military service in 2001.
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Sources told Reuters that talks for Google to acquire Wiz gained traction in the past two months after Trump returned to the White House.
Since Trump’s election, Google and other tech companies have been vying for influence with the White House.
Unit 8200 alumni
In February, Google dropped its pledge not to use artificial intelligence for purposes such as developing weapons and surveillance tools.
Anna Bacciarelli, a senior researcher in Human Rights Watch’s technology rights and investigations division, said Google appeared to be deepening its ties to the Trump administration and Israel by prioritising AI for national security.
“The acquisition of Wiz, a cybersecurity firm founded by ex-members of Unit 8200, further entrenches Google’s stakes in AI-driven military technology,” Bacciarelli told MEE, citing concerns raised by rights groups who accuse Unit 8200 of participating in mass surveillance and rights abuses against Palestinians.
“Unit 8200 has developed and deployed mass surveillance and technology systems that are incompatible with human rights. Google’s investment in Unit 8200 alumni raises serious concerns about its potential complicity in human rights abuses.”
‘The acquisition of a company that will further bolster projects like Nimbus only heightens the risk of exacerbating Israel’s system of apartheid and repression’ — Matt Mahmoudi, Amnesty International
She described Google’s acquisition of Wiz as a “calculated business move” aimed at entrenching the company’s “dominance over cloud infrastructure by consolidating its power in ways that make accountability much harder”.
“Google has been expanding its cloud presence in the Middle East in recent years, serving as a cloud provider for government services in countries such as the UAE and Kuwait, and partnering with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
“Google is openly prioritising AI for national security, deepening its ties with the US government and Israel. Project Nimbus – its cloud contract with Israel, shared with Amazon – directly enables military operations.”
Matt Mahmoudi, a researcher on AI and human rights for Amnesty International, echoed Bacciarelli’s concerns and said the inclusion of a company dominated by Unit 8200 veterans was “deeply concerning”.
“Google once upheld AI principles and even operationalised the ‘don’t be evil’ mantra. But those commitments have been systematically eroded – particularly with the development of AI-driven weaponry and military applications,” Mahmoud told MEE, citing a slogan associated with Google that still forms part of the company’s code of conduct.
“Despite clear warnings from human rights experts that these technologies could contribute to genocide, Google continues its engagement with Israeli authorities, showing a blatant disregard for international human rights law.
“The acquisition of a company that will further bolster projects like Nimbus only heightens the risk of exacerbating Israel’s system of apartheid and repression.”
Areeb Ullah is a journalist for Middle East Eye. He focuses on migrant workers in the Gulf, Syria, counter-terrorism policy and social movements across the Middle East and North Africa. His work has appeared in Al-Jazeera, the Guardian, and Huffington Post, among others.
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