Palo Alto Networks is in talks to acquire Clutch Security, an Israeli startup that secures the credentials AI agents use to access corporate systems, for about $500 million, The Information reported, citing people familiar with the negotiations. The talks are ongoing and may not produce a deal.
Neither company has confirmed a price. Palo Alto Networks said it does not comment on rumors or speculation, and Clutch Security declined to comment. If it closes, the purchase would be Palo Alto's fifth announced acquisition of 2026.
Clutch works on non-human identities: the API keys, service accounts, tokens and passwords that software, and increasingly autonomous AI agents, use to log into company systems. Its platform maps those identities across an organization, flags excessive or exposed permissions, manages credentials through their lifecycle and detects suspicious activity.
Key facts
- 01Palo Alto Networks is in talks to acquire Israeli startup Clutch Security for about $500M, The Information reported.
- 02Clutch secures non-human identities, including credentials AI agents use to access corporate systems.
- 03Clutch was founded in late 2023 by CEO Ofir Har-Chen, CTO Sagi Haas and VP of R&D Tal Kimhi.
- 04The startup raised about $28.5M: an $8.5M seed led by Lightspeed and a $20M Series A led by SignalFire.
- 05A deal would be Palo Alto's fifth announced acquisition of 2026, after its $25B CyberArk purchase.
Clutch was founded in late 2023 by CEO Ofir Har-Chen, a former COO at Hunters, along with CTO Sagi Haas and VP of R&D Tal Kimhi. The company operates in Israel and the United States.
The startup has raised about $28.5 million across two disclosed rounds. Its $8.5 million seed in July 2024 was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with Merlin Ventures and individual investors including Shlomo Kramer, Exabeam co-founder Nir Polak and HashiCorp co-founder Armon Dadgar. A $20 million Series A in January 2025 was led by SignalFire, with Lightspeed and Merlin returning.
Palo Alto Networks has been buying aggressively in identity and AI security. The company completed its roughly $25 billion acquisition of identity security firm CyberArk earlier in 2026.
Rival security and identity vendors are making similar bets on non-human identity. Workday acquired C1.ai last month, Okta bought Permiso Security in August, and SailPoint acquired Entro Security in June.
Clutch's current valuation has not been disclosed, and the final terms of any transaction with Palo Alto Networks remain unclear.
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