ServiceNow to acquire connected device security startup Armis for $7.75B – News

ServiceNow Inc. today announced plans to acquire Armis Inc., a startup with a cybersecurity platform optimized to protect connected devices.

The all-cash transaction is worth $7.75 billion. That’s a more than $1.5 billion premium to the valuation Armis received after its most recent funding round in November. One of the investors that stands to earn a return is Alphabet Inc., which participated in the round through its CapitalG growth fund.

Armis’ platform protects industrial robots, office printers and other connected devices from hackers. Centrix, as the software is called, detects malicious activity such as attempts to install unauthorized programs on a system. The platform also spots device vulnerabilities that could lead to cyberattacks in the future.

Many cybersecurity platforms detect breaches with the help of agents, data collection programs deployed on the systems a company wishes to protect. Installing an agent often isn’t an option with connected devices. The reason is that many devices lack the necessary computing capacity or don’t have an operating system installed. According to Armis, Centrix detects breaches using an agentless mechanism that supports a broad range of connected systems.

The company says its platform also protects customer devices in other ways. It creates honeypots, malware detection engines disguised as technology assets. When hackers attempt to access a honeypot, Centrix raises the alarm.

ServiceNow will use the company’s technology to enhance its existing portfolio of cybersecurity tools. Those tools enable enterprises to create workflows that automate common cybersecurity tasks. For example, a ServiceNow customer could create a workflow that automatically scans files for malware and quarantines them if a threat is found.

ServiceNow automates incident response tasks by sending remediation instructions to a company’s other cybersecurity tools. Centrix is one of the tools with which the platform integrates. ServiceNow uses the software’s device scanning capabilities to collect information for its CMDB database, which helps companies keep tabs on what devices are running in their networks and how they interact with one another. 

Following the acquisition, the company plans to more closely integrate Armis with its product portfolio. The initiative will place particular emphasis on ServiceNow AI Control Tower, a tool that helps enterprises secure their artificial intelligence applications. The company hopes to make it easier for customers to fend off AI-powered cyberattacks. Another priority will be to automate the process of routing data about a breach to the administrator best-equipped to remediate it. 

“Modern cyber risk doesn’t stay neatly confined to a single silo, and with security built into the ServiceNow AI Platform, neither will we,” said Amit Zavery, ServiceNow’s chief product and operating officer.

ServiceNow disclosed on the occasion of the deal that its cybersecurity and risk unit passed the $1 billion annual recurring revenue mark last quarter. According to the company, the acquisition of Armis will more than triple the unit’s market opportunity. The connected device security startup is generating more than $340 million in annual recurring revenue with a year-over-year growth rate that exceeds 50%.

ServiceNow expects to complete the acquisition in the second half of 2026. It will finance the transaction with cash on hand and debt.

Armis is the second cybersecurity provider ServiceNow has acquired this month. The company previously agreed to buy Veza Inc, which helps enterprises secure the accounts their employees and AI agents use to log into work applications. The transaction is reportedly valued at about $1 billion.

Photo: Armis