On June 6, Google announced its plans to acquire Looker, a unified data and analytics platform, for $2.6 billion in an all-cash transaction. Looker is a unified data platform that integrates data into the daily workflow of users and enables organizations to extract value from the data. After the deal is over later this year, Looker will be joining Google Cloud.

Data remains an untapped resource for many organizations and businesses. The addition of Looker to Google Cloud will provide customers with a more comprehensive analytics solution, from ingesting and integrating data to gain insights, to embedded analytics and visualizations. Consequently, this enables enterprises to leverage the power of analytics, machine learning and AI.

“Google Cloud is being used by many of the leading organizations in the world for analytics and decision-making. The combination of Google Cloud and Looker will enable customers to harness data in new ways to drive their digital transformation,” said Thomas Kurian, chief executive officer of Google Cloud. “We remain committed to our multi-cloud strategy and will retain and expand Looker’s capabilities to analyze data across Clouds.”

“The data analytics market is growing incredibly fast as companies look to leverage all of their data to make more informed decisions,” said Frank Gens, Senior Vice President & Chief Analyst, IDC. “Google Cloud is one of the leaders in the data warehouse market, and the addition of Looker will further strengthen their ability to serve the needs of enterprise customers while also advancing their commitment to multi-cloud.”

This acquisition builds on an existing partnership where the two companies share more than 350 joint customers, such as Buzzfeed, Hearst, King, Sunrun, WPP Essence, and Yahoo!. The acquisition of Looker will finalize later this year and is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals.