Salesforce buys Braze for $5.66 billion in AI marketing push

The Braze deal fits a pattern for Salesforce, which has been expanding its AI capabilities both through in-house development and acquisitions. In September, it completed a $3.6 billion deal to acquire Fin, which develops AI agents for customer service, and also acquired Contentful for roughly $1.5 billion to support more personalized customer experiences. More recently, Salesforce announced an agreement to acquire Listen Labs, an AI customer research firm, without disclosing financial terms. These moves come as Salesforce's existing AI business gains traction: Agentforce annual recurring revenue surpassed $1.5 billion in its fiscal second quarter, up 240% year over year, and combined with Data 360 reached $3.9 billion. Braze, which serves roughly 2,770 customers including Urban Outfitters, Instacart and Canva, would bring a real-time engagement layer that Salesforce's marketing business has historically lacked, according to Shay Boloor of Futurum Equities. The acquisition is expected to close in Salesforce's fiscal 2028, and Salesforce said it does not expect the deal to affect its fiscal 2027 financial guidance.