Exclusive: AI-powered security startup emerges from stealth
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Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
Orchid Security is emerging from stealth today with $36 million in seed funding led by Team8 and Intel Capital, the startup first shared with Axios.
Why it matters: The U.S.-Israeli startup is shepherding a new way of tackling age-old user identity and password security problems, which continue to cause headaches for major companies.
The big picture: Companies typically manage hundreds of different applications across their systems and networks, including internal messaging apps, email services, HR tools and more.
- Each of those applications require different identity management configurations—such as multi-factor authentication—to keep hackers from meddling with them to gain access to the company.
- "The organizational application was written by someone: It could be a vendor, it could be homegrown, it could be a lot of things," CEO and co-founder Roy Katmor told Axios. "There is no standard to writing an application."
- Retrofitting a standard security solution to each of those uniquely written applications just doesn't work, Katmor added.
Zoom in: Orchid asks large-language models to automatically identify the security requirements for each of their customers' internal applications and what an organization needs to do to better secure each product.
- Orchid also measures this progress against the data protection regulatory requirements that their customers may also need to follow.
The intrigue: Orchid Security is already working with Costco, Repsol and other Fortune 500 companies to secure their large enterprises.
What's next: Orchid Security is planning to use the new funding to both build out its product and also to hire 20 new people by the end of the year, Katmor told Axios.
- Many of those hires will be in sales as the company focuses on building out its North American and European customer base.
Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect that Orchid Security is a U.S. and Israeli company.
