Palo Alto Networks has acquired Console, a two-year-old startup that employs AI agents to automate routine IT help desk tasks, for $500 million in cash and stock, according to two sources familiar with the transaction. The deal was officially announced on Tuesday, though financial details were not disclosed at the time. Console, founded in 2024, had raised $29 million across two funding rounds, including a $6.2 million seed round led by Thrive Capital and a $23 million Series A co-led by DST Global and Thrive Capital.
Prior to the acquisition, Console was valued at $157 million, according to PitchBook, providing a swift return for investors such as SV Angel, Abstract Ventures, and Palo Alto Networks CEO Nikesh Arora, who participated as an angel investor. Palo Alto Networks plans to integrate Console into its Cortex platform, leveraging Console’s agentic functionality to enable security teams to investigate and resolve alerts using natural language, thereby enhancing Cortex’s capability to deliver autonomous security outcomes across enterprises. Source