The cybersecurity startup’s decision to turn down what could have been Alphabet’s largest-ever acquisition at $23bn. Credit: T. Schneider/Shutterstock.

Cybersecurity startup Wiz has reportedly rejected the acquisition offer worth up to $23bn from Google’s parent company Alphabet. 

Instead, Wiz has decided to pursue an initial public offering (IPO) with the aim of achieving $1bn in annual recurring revenue. 

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According to an internal memo obtained by Reuters, Wiz’s founder and CEO Assaf Rappaport described the offer as “flattering” but expressed a preference for the company to proceed independently towards an IPO. 

“While we are flattered by offers, we have received, we have chosen to continue on our path to building Wiz. Saying no to such humbling offers is tough, but with our exceptional team, I feel confident in making that choice.  

“The market validation we have experienced following this news only reinforces our goal – creating a platform that both security and development teams love,” Rappaport stated in the memo.  

Alphabet and Wiz have not publicly acknowledged any negotiations, and Google, a subsidiary of Alphabet, has not responded to requests for comment, reported the media outlet. 

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The deal, which was reportedly in the advanced discussion stage earlier this month, would have been a significant move for Google in its efforts to strengthen its position against competitors such as Microsoft and Amazon in the cloud services sector.  

Wiz, supported by investors such as Sequoia Capital and Thrive Capital, offers cloud security services that integrate with platforms such as Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure.  

The company’s technology scans for security risks in data stored on these cloud services. 

Alphabet’s offer placed Wiz’s value at nearly doubles its valuation from a funding round, with investors such as investors such as Andreessen Horowitz and Lightspeed Venture Partners, in May. 

This round valued the four-year-old startup at nearly $12bn. 

Google’s previous acquisition of Mandiant for $5.4bn two years ago marked its second-largest purchase, enhancing its security capabilities.