Straiker Launches with $21M Funding to Secure Enterprise AI Applications

Straiker launches with $21 million in funding to secure enterprise AI applications - SiliconANGLE

Straiker launches with $21 million in funding to secure enterprise AI applications Artificial intelligence-native security company Straiker launched today with an announcement that it has raised $21 million from Lightspeed Venture Partners LP and Bain Capital Ventures. The company introduced solutions designed to safeguard the full range of enterprise AI applications, from AI-native apps to agents. Straiker aims to help organizations confidently deploy AI by addressing critical security and safety risks with the AI apps enterprises are building and deploying. Its solutions include automated, red-team-level assessment within the company's runtime safety, and security guardrails for continuous analysis and automated blocking. The company says its solutions harness intelligence from each layer of the AI application stack -- including user, models, applications, agents, identity and data -- to ensure precise assessment results and industry-leading protection. Introduced today in general availability are two AI-native models. The first, Ascend AI, performs an in-depth attack simulation using an advanced, curated set of AI-specific safety and security threats. The second, Defend AI, extends protection beyond prompt-level threats to shield AI applications and agents from a wide range of security and safety threats. Both modules are powered by the Straiker AI Engine, which uses a mix of small, fine-tuned models that reason across intelligence from every layer of the AI applications stack. The engine enables customizations to address unique safety and security requirements with an architecture designed to preserve privacy. The service is supported by Straiker's STAR team, a dedicated AI threat intelligence team that investigates the latest model and autonomous agent risks and researches the tactics, techniques and procedures being employed by adversaries. The company already has customers using its services, including People.ai Inc., Coupa Software Inc. and DirecTV LLC. "AI is rapidly becoming one of the most significant cybersecurity risks. Enterprises must act now to stay ahead of these emerging risks and make AI security a top priority," said co-founder and Chief Executive Ankur Shah. "Straiker is the only AI-native platform that delivers real-time protection against attacks aimed at each layer of AI apps and agents."

Straiker launches enterprise AI security program

Straiker launched publicly on March 27, 2025, in Sunnyvale, California, with $21 million in funding from Lightspeed Ventures and Bain Capital Ventures. The company introduced an AI-native security solution designed to safeguard AI applications and agents in enterprises, focusing on mitigating critical security and safety risks. The solution aims to address emerging threats like mass data exfiltration, supply chain attacks, and autonomous chaos. These risks stem from exploiting AI's language and reasoning vulnerabilities. Ankur Shah, Co-founder and CEO of Straiker, highlighted the expanding threat landscape. "Enterprises must act now to stay ahead of these emerging risks and make AI security a top priority," Shah stated. Straiker's platform offers automated, red-team-level assessments integrated with runtime safety and security guardrails. This continuous analysis enables real-time protection against multi-layer threats. The platform's strategy includes integrating intelligence from multiple layers, including user, models, application, agents, identity, and data. This layered approach ensures precise assessment and protection across the board. Straiker's launch includes two AI-native modules designed to robustly address critical AI security concerns: Both modules are powered by the Straiker AI Engine, leveraging fine-tuned models that reason across intelligence from every AI application layer. This design promotes precision and low latency for quick app performance. Straiker's infrastructure secures privacy concerns by customizing for unique safety requirements. Verdantis' AI agents are going to end all your data nightmares Straiker also hosts the STAR team, a dedicated AI security research team evaluating model and autonomous agent risks, tracking adversary tactics, techniques, and procedures. Customer endorsements highlight Straiker's impact: Investors also expressed their support: Straiker was founded by seasoned AI and cybersecurity veterans. It aims to secure every stage of the AI application lifecycle and provide protection for third-party AI applications. Considering the escalating threat environment today, where AI applications are virtually inevitable in business strategy, Straiker's emergence should raise eyebrows among enterprises, particularly those content with conventional security measures. It should be fascinating to monitor which businesses will integrate Straiker's insightful, nuanced consultancy into their defensive mechanism, compared to those who will stick with fallible, mainstream systems. Security is no longer just a reactive measure. With products like straiker's ascend AI and defend AI, enterprises may also view security as a proactive initiative, thereby securing the AI apps and agents to not only implement resilient countermeasures but also add value to business security.