ServiceNow has announced a $7.8bn deal to acquire security startup Armis at the end of what has been a big year for cybersecurity merger and acquisition (M&A) activity.
Best known for its IT service and operations management and security operations (SecOps) offerings, ServiceNow said the acquisition would “extend and enhance” its security, risk, and OT portfolios.
The firm claimed the deal will “more than triple” its market opportunity for security and risk solutions.
The two firms have been longtime partners, with Armis data powering ServiceNow’s automated workflows for joint customers.
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Armis is best known for its OT and IoT security expertise, which enables customers to manage cyber-risk exposure across often poorly protected assets.
ServiceNow claimed the combination of this with its workflow automation expertise would help prospective customers in sectors like manufacturing and healthcare to proactively close security gaps.
The AI Angle
ServiceNow was also keen to emphasize the importance of Armis data and insights to its AI Control Tower platform, which unifies AI management and governance across the enterprise.
The tie-up will help organizations more effectively defend against AI-powered attacks by providing insight into where they’re exposed and automated remediation at scale to continuously reduce risk, the firm claimed.
“In the agentic AI era, intelligent trust and governance that span any cloud, any asset, any AI system, and any device are non-negotiable if companies want to scale AI for the long-term,” said ServiceNow president, Amit Zavery.
“Together with Armis, we will deliver an industry-defining strategic cybersecurity shield for real-time, end-to-end proactive protection across all technology estates. Modern cyber risk doesn’t stay neatly confined to a single silo, and with security built into the ServiceNow AI Platform, neither will we.”
However, the key to a successful acquisition, as always, will be how well the two firms integrate their offerings – particularly Armis’ data and ServiceNow’s popular configuration management database (CMDB) product.
“In the era of AI and agents, the benefits and value will be enormous, but so is the complexity,” said Larry Feinsmith, head of global tech strategy, innovation & partnerships at JPMorgan Chase.
“The combination of ServiceNow and Armis provides a dynamic picture of an enterprise’s connected technology assets and an AI and agentic-powered blueprint to secure and enable trusted AI.”
M&A activity rebounded sharply in 2025, with the value of deals beating those of 2024 by more than 10% and coming close to exceeding the record set in 2021, of around $75bn.
The acquisition is an all-cash deal expected to close in the second half of 2026.
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