In order to strengthen its defenses against potential security vulnerabilities that may be exacerbated by the widespread use of artificial intelligence, Cisco has agreed to pay $28 billion to acquire the cybersecurity company Splunk.
The tech behemoth from Silicon Valley will pay $157 for each Splunk Inc. share.“Our combined capabilities will drive the next generation of AI-enabled security and observability,” said Cisco Chair and CEO Chuck Robbins in a prepared statement. “We will assist in increasing the security and resilience of organizations of all sizes, from threat detection and response to threat prediction and prevention.”
The deal which is anticipated to be completed by the end of the third quarter of 2024, was approved by the boards of both firms. It still requires shareholder approval for Splunk.Before the market opened on Thursday, shares of Cisco Systems Inc. fell by more than 4% while those of Splunk rose by about 22%.
