Cybersecurity is one of the most dynamic and crowded corners of the tech landscape. From AI-powered threat detection to securing the software supply chain, founders are shaping the next generation of digital defense. All are worth following as the industry faces rising regulatory pressure, escalating attacks, and an increasingly complex cloud system.

Here are 11 cybersecurity founders you should keep an eye on.

Yossi Barishev, Stealth Cybersecurity Startup

Yossi Barishev entered stealth mode in early 2025 to build his next cybersecurity venture. Previously, he served as Director of Security Innovation at Fireblocks, where he helped shape the security architecture for one of the leading digital asset custody platforms. Before that, he was part of Sygnia’s elite incident consulting team, working with Fortune 500 enterprises to strategize their security posture and recover from some of the world’s most sophisticated cyberattacks.

Daniel Shechter, Miggo Security

Daniel Shechter co-founded Miggo Security alongside Itai Goldman in 2023. Miggo is an end-to-end runtime Application Detection & Response (ADR) platform powered by DeepTracing™ technology that maps application behavior and logic in real time to identify and block threats before they become breaches. The platform delivers instant protection for new vulnerabilities in minutes with the Miggo WAF Copilot, sidestepping traditional patch-and-pray cycles and preserving developer velocity, a timely approach to defend against AI-enabled cyber attackers. To date, Miggo has raised $25 million from leading cyber VCs SYN Ventures and YL Ventures, funding its expansion across regulated industries like finance, healthcare, SaaS, and e-commerce.

Louise Ireland, Batuta, (formerly Metabase Q)

Louise Ireland is co-founder and President of Batuta (formerly Metabase Q), an Endpoint Security Posture Management platform recognized within the World Economic Forum’s Global Innovators Community. She has scaled Batuta from zero to 100+ employees, overseeing strategy, operations, finance, marketing, and tech, showcasing her proficiency in building multifunctional teams across borders. Her background in VC and investment banking, where she invested over $140 million in early-stage startups, gives her a unique edge in shaping cybersecurity innovation from both strategic and capital perspectives.

Josh Kamdjou, Sublime Security

Josh Kamdjou is the founder and CEO of Sublime Security, the first open email security platform offering rule-based threat detection using a universal domain-specific language (DSL). The platform empowers security teams to write, run, and share filters and hunting rules directly, bridging the gap between flexibility and proactive defense in email security. Sublime has raised $9.8 million in funding led by Decibel Partners and Slow Ventures, enabling continued investment in capabilities and community growth.

Lisa Kaplan, Alethea Group

Lisa Kaplan founded Alethea Group in 2019 to combat disinformation and influence operations via AI-powered social media monitoring, a mission that’s attracted substantial institutional backing. The company raised $20 million in a 2024 Series B round led by Google Ventures amid a tight cybersecurity funding landscape, signaling investor confidence in its differentiated approach. With a current headcount of around 50, Kaplan plans to grow to approximately 75 employees by year’s end to meet surging demand for proactive disinformation defense.

Colby DeRodeff, Abstract Security

Colby DeRodeff is the CEO and co-founder of Abstract Security, a startup founded in 2023 with a mission to transform security analytics via an AI-powered data platform that merges compliance and detection without vendor lock-in. In 2024, Abstract received a "Pioneering Cybersecurity Startup" award from Cyber Defense Magazine, validating its innovative approach and fast-moving execution. The company has secured seed funding of $8.5M and expanded globally, including launching a Middle East office and adding industry veteran Christopher Key to its board.

Karthik Krishnan, Concentric AI

Karthik Krishnan is the founder and CEO of Concentric AI, where he leads efforts to secure unstructured enterprise data using deep learning and semantic analysis to address a critical vulnerability as organizations store 80% of their data outside structured control planes. With over two decades in security, Krishnan brings both strategic and operational depth to Concentric’s mission. His leadership has yielded rapid growth: in 2024, the company tripled its customer base, managing hundreds of petabytes while achieving 300% year-over-year revenue growth and expanding across diverse industries.

Itzik Alvas, Entro Security

Itzik Alvas co-founded Entro Security in 2021, motivated by personal experience with mismanaged “non-human identities” during his tenure as CISO at an Israeli healthcare firm and security leader at Microsoft. Entro has developed a holistic secrets security platform that spans discovery, control, and policy enforcement for credentials across cloud environments. The company has raised over $24 million (with Series A of $18 million led by Dell Technologies Capital) and counts clients like Booking, Kayak, Elastic, and SolarWinds among its user base.

Lior Div, 7AI

Serial entrepreneur, CEO, and co-founder of 7AI, Lior Div, is recognized as a leading voice on how AI is reshaping cybersecurity and enabling the rise of AI-native companies. Prior to 7AI, he co-founded Cybereason, where he translated his deep cybersecurity expertise into enterprise solutions that helped organizations detect and stop some of the hardest-to-identify persistent attacks. A Medal of Honor recipient for his service as a commander of an elite cyber unit, Div brings unmatched experience in forensics, hacking, reverse engineering, and encryption to his latest venture.

Feross Aboukhadijeh, Socket

Feross Aboukhadijeh founded Socket, a cybersecurity platform built to defend against software supply chain attacks by proactively analyzing dependency behavior in real time. An experienced open-source developer, with work including widely-used projects like WebTorrent and StandardJS, and leadership on the Node.js Foundation board, he’s uniquely positioned to blend developer empathy with secure defaults. Socket claims to detect over 100 zero-day attacks weekly while enabling secure, seamless workflows across industries, including tech, healthcare, finance, and media

David Primor, Cynomi

David Primor is at the helm of Cynomi, a company bringing Virtual CISO (vCISO) capabilities to MSPs and MSSPs, enabling smaller organizations to benefit from strategic, automated CISO-level oversight efficiently. With roots in Israel’s Unit 8200, Primor combines elite cyber defense experience with a scalable SaaS strategy. His vision helps bridge the gap for businesses that can’t afford a full-time CISO but remain exposed to growing cybersecurity risk.

Founders Shaping the Future of Cybersecurity

These founders are redefining cybersecurity across domains. Their diverse approaches, such as stealth innovation, data-centric analytics, programming-enabling security, and defensible automation, reflect the increasingly layered nature of cyber risk. Whether you're an investor, CISO, or security leader, these are the names to watch as they sculpt the next frontier of digital defense.