Freshworks to buy Torii to track company spending on AI and software

Freshworks, the Nasdaq-listed business software company, announced on Monday, 12 October 2026, that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Torii, a start-up whose platform helps companies manage the software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications they use and the money they spend on them. Freshworks said the deal will extend its Freshservice IT service management product into software management and governance of spending on artificial intelligence tools. Financial terms were not disclosed. The acquisition is expected to close in Freshworks' fourth fiscal quarter of 2026, subject to customary conditions, and the two companies will operate independently until then.

Companies now pay for dozens or even hundreds of cloud software subscriptions, and the arrival of AI tools has added a new and fast-growing bill. AI services are often charged by usage, so costs can climb quickly when employees across a business start using chatbots, coding assistants and AI features built into other products. IT and finance teams want to know who is using what, how much it costs and whether it is worth it. Torii's pitch is that it can answer those questions, down to individual users and teams.

For Freshworks, the deal adds a feature that its IT service management customers increasingly need. Freshservice already helps IT teams handle support tickets and assets; adding software and AI spend tracking turns it into a broader control centre for the tools a company runs on. Buying a specialist rather than building from scratch can get that capability to customers faster.

The deal is also part of a wider pattern. In the same week, Bengaluru-based Zluri, which works in the same SaaS management category, was acquired by the IT advisory firm Infotech. Two deals in one category in a single week suggest that larger software and services firms see managing software and AI spending as an important and growing need, and that smaller specialists in the field are attractive targets.

Short-term: Torii's customers continue to use its product while the deal awaits closing. Freshworks' customers can expect Torii's features to appear in Freshservice after the acquisition completes.

Long-term: As AI spending grows, tools that track and control it are likely to become a standard part of IT management software. The deal positions Freshworks in that market and adds to consolidation among SaaS management start-ups.

Who is affected: Freshworks and Torii employees and customers, IT and finance teams that manage software budgets, rival SaaS management start-ups, and investors watching consolidation in business software.

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