Mark Andress

Dealmaking for North American cybersecurity companies slowed sharply in 1Q26 as buyers reassessed valuations and technology defensibility due to the impact of artificial intelligence, said executives, advisors and investors. The pullback marks a sharp reversal from 2025, which saw near-record deal volume of USD 62.9bn from several landmark transactions, including Google’s USD 32bn acquisition of Wiz, the largest cybersecurity deal ever, according to Mergermarket data.

Data Insight Tariffs, supply chain issues, labor force disruptions, geopolitical convulsions, and greater-than-anticipated regulatory scrutiny have left dealmakers hitting the pause button on their plans, according to M&A practitioners. The number of deals has dropped to the lowest level in years amid uncertainty brought about by President Donald Trump’s aggressive policy stance, although dollar volume has remained robust.

Data Insight Cybersecurity dealmaking is expected to accelerate over the next year, driven largely by the rise of artificial intelligence-powered threats, advisors and investors say. But it might take a while to get going. While the second half of 2024 saw a surge in global cybersecurity M&A thanks to resurgent private equity activity in Israel and the UK in particular, transactions in North America were more muted.