Orca Security Ltd. v. Wiz, Inc.

Orca Security Ltd. and Wiz, Inc. are prominent, privately held "unicorn" companies operating in the highly competitive cloud security market. Orca Security, an Israeli-based operating company with U.S. headquarters, specializes in agentless cloud security solutions, providing a Cloud Native Application Protection Platform (CNAPP) built on its patented "SideScanning" technology designed to detect vulnerabilities, malware, and misconfigurations across various cloud environments. Wiz, also an Israeli-American operating company, offers a similar CNAPP that provides agentless visibility and risk prioritization across major cloud providers, utilizing its "Security Graph" to correlate findings and identify attack paths. Wiz was notably acquired by Google Cloud in March 2026.

The underlying patent dispute stems from Orca Security's allegations that Wiz built its cloud security platform by illicitly copying Orca's patented agentless approach, specifically its "SideScanning" technology, to secure virtual cloud assets. The accused products and services are Wiz's cloud security offerings, which Orca claimed infringed on its intellectual property related to safeguarding virtual machines and cloud assets against cyber threats. While the case metadata specifies US Patent 12001549 as at issue in this IPR, public patent databases do not readily provide a technical sketch for a patent with this exact number in the context of cloud security or the involved parties. Patents with similar numerical sequences found in public searches pertain to unrelated technologies, suggesting a potential identifier discrepancy for this specific patent. Therefore, a one-line technical sketch for US Patent 12001549 cannot be provided from publicly available information; however, the broader dispute involved patents covering agentless cloud security and vulnerability detection.

This specific action, IPR2025-01086, was a challenge filed by Orca Security Ltd. against US Patent 12001549 owned by Wiz, Inc. at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). On December 15, 2025, the PTAB denied institution of the inter partes review, meaning it declined to proceed with a full validity review of the challenged claims. This IPR was part of a larger, highly publicized "dueling" patent infringement litigation initiated by Orca against Wiz in the District of Delaware (C.A. No. 1:23-cv-00758). The Delaware district court case was subsequently stayed pending the outcomes of several IPRs filed by both companies. The PTAB's decisions on these IPRs, including the denial of institution in some cases and findings of unpatentability in others, ultimately weakened Orca's infringement claims, leading to a global settlement in January 2026 where all claims and counterclaims were dismissed with prejudice. The case is notable for the intense competition between two leading cloud security "unicorns" and the significant role played by parallel IPR proceedings in resolving their high-stakes patent dispute, particularly in light of Wiz's recent multi-billion dollar acquisition by Google Cloud.

The provided case, IPR2025-01086, is an Inter Partes Review (IPR) proceeding at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) and not a district court patent infringement litigation. Therefore, the details typically associated with patent infringement litigation, such as complaints, answers, Markman hearings, discovery, and trial events, are not applicable to this specific IPR case.

The key legal developments for IPR2025-01086 are as follows:

• IPR Petition Filing: Orca Security Ltd. filed a petition for Inter Partes Review challenging claims 1-5 and 11-16 of U.S. Patent No. 12,001,549, owned by Wiz, Inc.
• Institution Decision: On December 15, 2025, the PTAB denied institution of the review. This means the PTAB determined that Orca Security Ltd. had not demonstrated a reasonable likelihood that it would prevail on at least one of the challenged claims.

As of today, May 18, 2026, there is no publicly available information indicating a related patent infringement litigation in a district court directly associated with this specific IPR involving Orca Security Ltd. and Wiz, Inc. concerning U.S. Patent No. 12,001,549. The IPR proceeding itself concluded with the denial of institution.

Orca Security Ltd. was represented by counsel from Erise IP, P.A. in IPR2025-01086. While the specific Power of Attorney for IPR2025-01086 was not directly available, documents from closely related Inter Partes Review proceedings (IPR2025-01084 and IPR2025-01087), filed around the same time by Orca Security Ltd. against Wiz, Inc., list the following attorneys as representing Orca Security Ltd. as Petitioner:

• Robin A. Snader

  • Role: Lead Counsel (inferred from prominence in filings)
  • Firm: Erise IP, P.A.
  • Office Location: Kansas City, MO (Erise IP has offices in Kansas City, MO, and Denver, CO; Snader is typically associated with the Kansas City office).
  • Experience Note: Ms. Snader is an experienced patent litigator with a focus on inter partes review proceedings, having represented clients in numerous challenges before the PTAB.

• Eric A. Buresh

  • Role: Counsel
  • Firm: Erise IP, P.A.
  • Office Location: Kansas City, MO (Erise IP has offices in Kansas City, MO, and Denver, CO; Buresh is typically associated with the Kansas City office).
  • Experience Note: Mr. Buresh is a founding member of Erise IP and has extensive experience in patent litigation, including trials, appeals, and IPR proceedings, particularly in high-stakes intellectual property disputes.

• Christopher R. Schmidt

  • Role: Counsel
  • Firm: Erise IP, P.A.
  • Office Location: Kansas City, MO (Erise IP has offices in Kansas City, MO, and Denver, CO; Schmidt is typically associated with the Kansas City office).
  • Experience Note: Mr. Schmidt's practice focuses on patent litigation, post-grant proceedings before the PTAB, and intellectual property counseling.

• Kathleen Fitterling

  • Role: Counsel
  • Firm: Erise IP, P.A.
  • Office Location: Kansas City, MO (Erise IP has offices in Kansas City, MO, and Denver, CO; Fitterling is typically associated with the Kansas City office).
  • Experience Note: Ms. Fitterling is involved in patent litigation and inter partes review proceedings, representing both petitioners and patent owners.

Ori Ron, General Counsel for Orca Security Ltd., signed the Petitioner's Power of Attorney in a related IPR, indicating an in-house role for the company.

In the Inter Partes Review (IPR) case IPR2025-01086, where Orca Security Ltd. challenged a patent owned by Wiz, Inc., Matthew A. Argenti of Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati represented Wiz, Inc. as counsel for the Patent Owner.

Here is a breakdown of the identified counsel:

• Name: Matthew A. Argenti
  • Role: Counsel for Patent Owner
  • Firm: Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
  • Office Location: Palo Alto, CA
  • Relevant Patent Litigation Experience: While specific details for IPR2025-01086 are not available, Matthew A. Argenti is associated with Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a firm with a robust Intellectual Property practice, including Patent Trial & Appeal Board (PTAB) proceedings and Patent Litigation. His registration number (61,836) is also noted in filings related to Wiz, Inc.'s representation.

It's important to note that IPR2025-01086 was denied institution, and a related IPR (IPR2025-01087) involving the same parties and counsel was terminated due to a confidential settlement agreement.