Mergers & Acquisitions

CrowdStrike Acquires Onum for $290M to Boost AI Security

Deal for Spanish data startup aims to enhance real-time telemetry and strengthen the company's Falcon platform amid rising AI threats.

CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. (CRWD) has acquired Onum, a Madrid-based data observability startup, in a $290 million deal designed to sharpen its competitive edge in the AI-powered cybersecurity landscape. The acquisition, announced on August 27, aims to solve a growing 'data crisis' for security teams by enhancing how CrowdStrike’s Falcon platform ingests and analyzes security information in real time.

The deal centers on integrating Onum’s real-time pipeline detection technology into CrowdStrike's Falcon Next-Gen SIEM (Security Information and Event Management) platform. As cyberattacks grow more sophisticated and rapid, driven by generative AI, the ability to process vast amounts of data, or telemetry, in milliseconds is critical. , rather than analyzing it after storage, a crucial shift from legacy systems.

CEO George Kurtz framed the acquisition as a strategic move to build a formidable data moat. 'If you think about the data we have, we started becoming the Reddit of security data for all these AI models,' Kurtz stated, emphasizing that more data allows the company to solve broader problems from an AI perspective. The company expects the integration to deliver significant performance boosts, projecting a .

Market analysts have reacted with cautious optimism, viewing the acquisition as a vital strategic step. Wedbush analyst Dan Ives reiterated his confidence in the company, calling CrowdStrike the 'gold standard in the cybersecurity space' and a key AI beneficiary. The move is seen as essential for staying competitive, enabling CrowdStrike to offer a more efficient and disruptive pricing model for its SIEM services by .

This acquisition underscores a broader industry trend of consolidation, where leading cybersecurity firms are purchasing specialized startups to quickly incorporate new capabilities. As Kurtz noted, the rise of generative AI is 'democratizing destruction,' compelling security providers to innovate at an unprecedented pace. By bringing Onum's capabilities in-house, CrowdStrike aims to ensure its platform is prepared for the next wave of AI-driven threats.