CrowdStrike to acquire Fiddler AI and Dreadnode for $495 million

The cybersecurity giant is buying two AI security startups to help enterprises watch, explain and stress-test their AI agents CrowdStrike has agreed to buy two AI security startups, Fiddler AI and Dreadnode, for a reported combined $495 million. The deals were reported on November 3, 2026. They mark CrowdStrike’s latest push into a corner of cybersecurity that barely existed a few years ago: securing the AI systems themselves, not just using AI to catch hackers. What CrowdStrike is buying Fiddler AI is based in Palo Alto and was founded in 2018. It focuses on observability and explainability for AI systems. CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz described Fiddler with a fitting aviation metaphor. “Flight recorder for every agent.” Fiddler’s technology is set to become a product called Falcon Observe. It is expected to be generally available in CrowdStrike’s Q4 FY27. Dreadnode is the younger of the pair, founded in 2023. Its specialty is pre-deployment security testing. CrowdStrike says the startup will strengthen automated testing mapped to the OWASP, MITRE ATLAS and NIST frameworks. The numbers behind the deal CrowdStrike did not disclose a price when it announced the Fiddler acquisition. I...