Seattle-based cybersecurity startup Protect AI is continuing its rapid growth since launching out of stealth in December 2022.
On Thursday, the company announced a $60 million Series B round, adding to a Wednesday announcement that it had acquired SydeLabs, a cybersecurity company focused on artificial intelligence. According to a Protect AI spokesperson, all nine of SydeLabs' employees are joining Protect AI, which now has 75 employees.
“Protect AI is continuously looking to add products to our AI security posture management platform that help our customers build a safer AI-powered world,” company co-founder and CEO Ian Swanson said in a news release.
The companies didn't provide financial terms of the deal. SydeLabs' brand will be folded into Protect AI, according to the Protect AI spokesperson.
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SydeLabs, which was founded in 2023, is headquartered in Bangalore, India. The company focuses on "red teaming" AI, or running attacks on AI to find weak spots. SydeLabs' product SydeBox is focused on finding weaknesses in large language models, such as ChatGPT, that generate human language based off prompts.
Protect AI, meanwhile, aims to protect machine learning and AI technology. Swanson previously told the Business Journal these technologies can have at-risk code or expose personally identifiable information, and traditional cybersecurity solutions aren't sufficient.
Protect AI raised $13.5 million when it launched out of stealth, plus $35 million in July of last year. In addition to Seattle and now Bangalore, the company has offices in Berlin. Protect AI said in the release the new funding will help it add to its technology, and the company plans to add 50 employees by the end of 2024.
Evolution Equity Partners led the round, while 01 Advisors, StepStone Group, Samsung, Acrew Capital, Boldstart Ventures, Knollwood Capital, Pelion Ventures and Salesforce Ventures participated. Evolution has also invested in the local cybersecurity startup Oleria.
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