Salesforce Agrees to Buy Braze for $5.66B to Strengthen AI Marketing
Salesforce will acquire customer engagement platform Braze for $5.66 billion, offering $47.50 per share in cash. The price represents about a 58% premium to Braze's prior close, and Braze shares rose more than 50% while Salesforce shares dipped about 1%. The deal is expected to close in Salesforce's fiscal 2028, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals.
Braze began in 2011 under the name Appboy and later listed on Nasdaq in 2021. Based in New York, it supplies tools that help brands coordinate outreach across apps, email, web, SMS, and other channels, using real-time user activity to guide campaign timing and personalization. Its customers have included Canva, Venmo, and Urban Outfitters.
The purchase adds to Salesforce’s recent AI-related dealmaking, including a planned $3.6 billion acquisition of Fin and a roughly $8 billion agreement for Informatica. Salesforce also expanded an Anthropic partnership with a sales-focused plugin called Claudeforce. Braze holders would get $47.50 per Class A share in cash.
The deal could give Salesforce more tools to combine customer data with AI-driven messaging, potentially changing how marketers reach consumers across apps, email, and SMS. Consumers may see more coordinated personalization, while businesses could face fewer independent platform choices. Employees and partners at Braze may experience integration changes. Regulators may scrutinize the deal’s effect on competition and data practices.