Cover Image for Reasons Why Wiz Rejected Google's $23 Billion Offer
Sun Nov 03 2024

Reasons Why Wiz Rejected Google's $23 Billion Offer

Welcome back to our weekly recap. This week, we bring you the highlights from the TechCrunch Disrupt event. If you missed it, here’s a rundown of the most important aspects.

The week in review brings us the most relevant updates from the TechCrunch Disrupt event, which featured interesting dialogues with prominent figures such as Aravind Srinivas, CEO of Perplexity, Matt Mullenweg, co-founder of WordPress, and Bridgit Mendler, former Disney star turned CEO in the space sector. Below is a summary of some of the main events of the week in the tech realm.

One of the highlights was Wiz's decision, co-founded and led by Assaf Rappaport, to reject a $23 billion offer from Alphabet. Rappaport explained that this choice was "the hardest of his life," but the company believes that the cloud security space represents a $100 billion opportunity. When they turned down the proposal, Wiz had a private valuation of $12 billion; although other offers emerged, none were as high as Google's.

Apple also had a busy week by unveiling significant updates, including the latest developments in its M chip lineup. The M4 Pro was announced, along with a new Mac mini and the M4 Max, which will be available as an upgrade option for the MacBook Pro line. Additionally, the company updated its desktop accessories, replacing the Lightning connector with USB-C, although the charging port of the Magic Mouse remains inconveniently located on the bottom.

On a different note, Dropbox announced it will lay off 20% of its workforce, affecting 528 employees. CEO Drew Houston stated that the company is in a "transition period" and is looking to improve efficiency by reducing investments in overexploited areas.

In further updates, Aravind Srinivas addressed the concept of "plagiarism" in a panel, insisting that Perplexity always cites its sources and does not claim authorship over any content. It was also revealed that OpenAI is collaborating with TSMC and Broadcom to develop its first artificial intelligence chip, which could be ready by 2026.

Among other topics, the launch of Arcadia AI, a platform that turns ideas into physical jewelry, stood out, as did Bridgit Mendler's presentation on her space venture, Northwood Space. LinkedIn announced the development of an AI-based hiring assistant, while Olivia Wilde unveiled her venture capital firm, Proximity Ventures.

Finally, the Startup Battlefield 200 competition at TechCrunch Disrupt crowned Salva Health as the winner, whose innovative Julieta is an AI-driven portable device for breast cancer detection, facilitating access to early testing in remote locations.