Cisco to buy Astrix Security in ~$400M push into AI identity defense

Cisco has agreed to acquire Israeli cybersecurity startup Astrix Security, a specialist in securing non-human identities such as API keys, service accounts, OAuth tokens, and AI agents. Cisco has not formally disclosed the purchase price, but multiple industry and Israeli media reports place the deal value at roughly $400 million, with estimates ranging from $300 million to $400 million. The transaction is aimed at integrating Astrix’s discovery, governance, lifecycle management, and threat detection capabilities into Cisco’s broader security stack, including Cisco Identity Intelligence, Secure Access, Duo, and event analytics via Splunk.

Astrix Security, founded in 2021, built a non-human identity safety platform designed to give enterprises granular visibility and control over agentic AI workloads and machine credentials. By bringing Astrix into its portfolio, Cisco is expanding its zero-trust and identity security strategy to cover the rapidly growing “agentic workforce,” addressing risks created by autonomous AI agents operating at scale across cloud and SaaS environments. For Astrix, the acquisition provides a large distribution channel and deeper product integration opportunities, positioning its technology as a core component of Cisco’s platform approach to AI and identity security. The deal underscores intensifying competition around securing non-human identities as enterprises accelerate deployment of AI-driven systems.