In response to the fast-changing AI and enterprise data field, Salesforce has made a $7.75 billion deal for data management firm Informatica as a way to expand. Buying Tableau is Salesforce’s biggest deal since it purchased Slack Technologies for $28 billion in 2021 and shows that the company wants to add powerful data infrastructure to its growing AI offerings.
How Contributions Are Arranged and Financial Details
Salesforce is offering Informatica shareholders $25 per share, which is a 30% premium over the company’s value on May 22, 2025—the day before negotiations began again. The deal is expected to be finalized in the following fiscal year in February 2026, financed partly by cash and borrowing new money.
Salesforce trusts that Informatica’s value will be important for its future goals, which is why it is paying such a premium. Right away, the news of the deal saw Informatica shares increase by nearly 6%, while Salesforce’s gained a very small amount, reflecting some optimism in the investment world.
AI Depends on Data for its Core
Data management, integration and application are the central aspects of planning this acquisition. Organizations turn to Informatica to store, process and manage all their data both on-premises and in the cloud. They are necessary for driving artificial intelligence, especially as generative AI systems need solid, correctly formatted data to operate well.
Marc Benioff, Salesforce CEO, said that combining the data from the companies will make it the most prepared data platform for call center agents. By using Informatica with its own CRM and cloud tools, Salesforce wants to provide a single platform for companies that use AI in customer service, sales and other parts of their business.
Aligning with AI Ambitions
This acquisition directly supports Salesforce’s Agentforce program—its new AI platform designed to deploy autonomous AI agents for tasks such as customer service, recruiting, and workflow automation. More than 1,000 paid deals have already been secured for Agentforce, suggesting significant demand.
However, as Benioff and other leaders in the tech space recognize, effective AI agents are only as good as the data that drives them. By integrating Informatica’s data governance, cleansing, and orchestration tools, Salesforce can offer AI solutions that are not only intelligent but also accurate, compliant, and secure.
Market Position and Competitive Landscape
The deal positions Salesforce to compete more aggressively with other enterprise giants such as Microsoft, Oracle, and Google Cloud, all of whom are investing heavily in AI and data infrastructure. According to analysts at Scotiabank, data management software is increasingly being bundled into larger software suites offered by mega-vendors. The acquisition thus helps Salesforce to keep pace with industry trends and meet evolving customer expectations.
Informatica’s long-standing customer base and technology stack give Salesforce immediate access to a mature data platform, bypassing the need to build such capabilities from scratch. This accelerates its time-to-market for data-centric AI products and strengthens its ability to upsell to existing CRM clients.
Operational and Financial Impact
The acquisition is expected to enhance operating margins starting in the second year post-closing, although full financial synergies may take longer to materialize. While Salesforce will assume some debt to finance the deal, analysts suggest that the company’s strong cash flow and recurring revenue model make the move sustainable.
Salesforce has been under pressure to deliver profitability after years of aggressive expansion. This deal signals a strategic pivot—not just growth through acquisitions, but growth that enhances core platform value and aligns with long-term enterprise needs.
Challenges and Risks
Despite its promise, the deal is not without risks. Integration challenges loom large, especially as both companies operate in complex enterprise ecosystems with their own customer bases and technology stacks. Moreover, the use of debt financing raises questions about future capital allocation, particularly if economic conditions tighten.
