Aikido buys Israeli AI security startup Root in ~$70–100M deal

Belgian cybersecurity unicorn Aikido Security has acquired Israeli cybersecurity startup Root, with multiple reports estimating the deal value in the range of approximately $70 million to $100 million. Aikido, based in Ghent and recently valued at around $1 billion following a $60 million Series B round, is using the transaction to deepen its capabilities in AI-powered application and software supply chain security. The financial terms were not formally disclosed by the companies, but Israeli and industry outlets consistently cite the same estimated valuation range for the acquisition.

Root, also known as Root.io and formerly Slim.AI, developed an AI-driven platform that automatically patches vulnerabilities in open-source components and containers at the versions organizations are already running, avoiding disruptive forced upgrades. The startup, which had raised about $37.6 million to date and is backed by investors including Insight Partners and StepStone Group, will see its roughly 25-person team in Tel Aviv absorbed into Aikido as the acquirer opens a new development center in Israel. The acquisition allows Aikido to integrate Root’s agentic remediation and backported patching technology into its broader DevSecOps offering, and the company has also committed to contributing certain backported fixes for critical, actively exploited open-source vulnerabilities upstream to the open-source community rather than keeping them proprietary. This deal continues Aikido’s recent acquisition streak following its purchases of AI code-review startup Trag and autonomous penetration testing firms Allseek and Haicker, and underscores the growing strategic value of AI-native tools for securing the software supply chain.