Lacework: from $8.3B valuation to selling for pennies to Fortinet
thedealdirector · x · 2026-11-11
The Deal Director revisits the rise and fall of cybersecurity firm Lacework: once valued at $8.3 billion, it ended up sold as a minor SKU line to Fortinet.
A telling detail: Lacework famously spent close to half a million dollars on 50 custom Barbie dolls given to CISOs just to score meetings. The lesson for tech sales, the author argues, starts with a relentless desire to know the truth about your product and team.
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