2 September 2026

Palo Alto Networks posts strong quarter as AI security threats drive customer upgrades

First reported

CNBC and TechCrunch ran this on 2 September, all on the same day.

Palo Alto Networks, a major cybersecurity company, reported revenue up 34% to $2.54 billion in its latest quarter, beating analyst expectations as companies rush to defend against AI-powered attacks.
CEO Nikesh Arora told CNBC that AI-driven cyberattacks are forcing enterprises to modernize aging security systems, describing this as a long-term trend rather than a one-quarter spike.
The company held 2,000 customer briefings this quarter, up from 1,200 last quarter, following high-profile breaches like the OpenAI and Hugging Face hack that showed AI agents can coordinate attacks autonomously.
Palo Alto acquired Console, an AI startup that automates IT help desk tasks, for $500 million in cash and stock to add autonomous capabilities to its Cortex security platform.
Palo Alto has now completed seven acquisitions this year, including a $3.35 billion deal for observability platform Chronosphere, as CEO Arora treats the startup ecosystem as a testing ground for new security tools.