Databricks adds cybersecurity with Lakewatch, bulking up ahead of IPO

Databricks has grown from a startup to a major software company; has made billions of dollars processing data and running productive AI models for customers.

Its next leg of growth is turning to cybersecurity with a new offering called Lakewatch.

Adobe National Australia Bank is currently using it, according to a statement. Anthropic also uses Databricks for cybersecurity purposes and its models run on Lakewatch. Customers can now ask about adopting Lakewatch.

CEO and co-founder Ali Ghodsi said large language models, or LLMs, have “matured to the point where you can actually automate and augment a significant portion” of cybersecurity.

The product represents an emerging alternative to similar services such as security information and event management, or SIEM Palo Alto Networks, Ciscoowner Splunk, Google And Microsoft.

If Lakewatch comes on board, it could help Databricks justify its $134 billion valuation to public investors ahead of its IPO. Ghodsi said in December that he would not rule out an IPO in 2026.

Rather than charging based on the amount of data stored, Databricks will determine Lakewatch costs based on the amount of work the software performs.

“The current pricing model is at odds with protecting against this avalanche that is coming our way because it is so expensive to move all your data out there,” Ghodsi said in an interview.

The pricing scheme allows administrators to integrate data from sources outside of traditional security tools (apps like Slack or Slack). Working dayfor example — to provide a more complete picture. Databricks won’t charge for storage but will ask customers to keep their data in cloud-based data lake services. From there Lakewatch can work on it.

Investors have become concerned about master’s degrees posing a threat to cybersecurity officials. In February, after model builder Anthropic announced a preview A tool that checks code for vulnerabilities Global X Cybersecurity Exchange Traded Fund fell about 5%.

AI concerns are weighing on software in general. WisdomTree Cloud Computing FundIt’s down about 19% so far in 2026, an exchange-traded fund full of software-as-a-service, or SaaS, stocks.

“With the kind of SaaS disruption we are seeing, Databricks will definitely participate in that disruption,” Ghodsi said.

Generative AI helped attackers faster exploitation newly discovered vulnerabilities. Ghodsi said organizations need more sophisticated tools to keep up with a greater number of incoming alerts.

In 2025, Databricks acquired small security startup Antimatter, whose technology was part of Lakewatch. Databricks also agreed to acquire another company called SiftD, whose three founders have 39 years of collective experience at Splunk.

Security practitioners value Splunk’s user interface, including its technology for searching over data, and team members at San Francisco-based SiftD “were instrumental in creating that,” Reynold

Security practitioners can prioritize alerts with generative AI models that provide context for each situation. Experts may also ask questions about threats to Databricks’ Genie AI agent.

Ghodsi said that over time, Databricks will add features to automatically respond to security threats.

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