Palo Alto Networks paid EUR 432 million in cash and stock to acquire Console, a two-year-old startup that builds AI agents to automate routine IT help desk work, according to two people familiar with the transaction. The cybersecurity company confirmed the acquisition on Tuesday but did not disclose financial terms.
Founded in 2024 by Andrei Serban, Console had raised EUR 25 million across two funding rounds. Those included a EUR 5 million seed round led by Thrive Capital and a EUR 20 million Series A co-led by DST Global and Thrive. Before the sale, PitchBook valued the company at EUR 136 million, meaning the deal delivered a rapid return for backers such as SV Angel, Abstract Ventures, and Palo Alto Networks CEO Nikesh Arora, who invested as an angel. Palo Alto Networks declined to comment.
How Console Fits Into Cortex
Palo Alto Networks plans to fold Console into Cortex, its platform that uses AI to automatically detect and neutralize threats. Console’s agentic capabilities will let security teams investigate and resolve alerts through natural language, giving Cortex what Arora described as “the arms and legs to deliver autonomous security outcomes across the entire enterprise.”
Serban launched Console shortly after his earlier company, code-security platform Fuzzbuzz, was acquired by Rippling. Console’s customers included Ramp, Flock Safety, and Scale AI. The startup automated tasks such as password resets, granting access to tools like Figma and Miro, and handling routine troubleshooting without direct human involvement.
A Competitive IT Automation Market
As a startup, Console competed mainly with Serval, another ServiceNow challenger that reached a EUR 1 billion valuation after raising a EUR 65 million Series B led by Sequoia last December. Serval began as an AI tech support tool and quickly expanded to offer AI assistance for human resources, legal, and finance teams. With Console now acquired, one investor who is not a Serval backer described Serval as the category leader to watch among startups automating IT service management.
The purchase marks Palo Alto Networks’ seventh acquisition in 2026, according to PitchBook. Other venture-backed companies the cybersecurity firm has bought this year include observability platform Chronosphere, backed by Greylock and Lux Capital, at a EUR 3 billion valuation, and Koi, a cyber startup supported by Battery and Team8, for EUR 345 million.
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