Darktrace Raises $75M to Fight Cybercrime With AIDarktrace Raises $75M to Fight Cybercrime With AI

The UK-based startup, which has tripled its growth in the US in the past year and doubled its headcount to 500, is now valued at $825 million.

Sarah Thomas, Director, Women in Comms

July 11, 2017

3 Min Read
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Darktrace, a startup that tackles cybercrime with artificial intelligence capabilities, has raised $75 million in a Series D round. The latest capital injection values the company at $825 million, testament to the security threat faced by network operators and enterprises and the power of machine learning technology.

The UK-based cybersecurity firm, backed by Autonomy's Mike Lynch, founded by University of Cambridge mathematicians and British intelligence agency veterans, and led by CEO Nicole Egan, has raised a total of $180 million since its inception in 2013. Insight Venture Partners led the latest funding round, along with existing investors Summit Partners, KKR and TenEleven Ventures.

Darktrace says it will use the funding to invest in sales and marketing, keep up with growth in the US and expand in the Asia/Pacific and Latin America regions. The company counts 3,000 enterprises across the globe in its customer roster. It has seen unprecedented growth during the past year, claiming to have contracts worth $200 million, a 140% yearly increase driven by tripled growth in the US. It has also doubled its headcount in the past 12 months to 500 employees.

The startup has caught the interest of investors and customers alike for its artificial intelligence algorithms that can spot patterns in networks, whether they be physical, virtual, cloud, IoT or industrial control systems, and block cybercrimes before they occur. Darktrace claims to have identified 30,000 previously unknown threats in more than 3,000 networks, including "zero-days, insider threats and subtle, stealthy attacks."

For more on artificial intelligence in the world of telecom, visit the dedicated automation content page here on Light Reading.

Cybercrime is a big business as attacks get more sophisticated and prevention becomes increasingly important. All enterprises, including telecom service providers, are investing in protecting their networks, especially after recent high-profile attacks such as WannaCry and NotPetya. (See CenturyLink: Are We All Security Service Providers Now? and WannaCry Continues at a Slowed Pace.)

At the same time, AI capabilities are quickly gaining traction as the technologies to revolutionize everything from customer care to network operations to cybersecurity. As such, startups like Darktrace are attracting attention, funding and the interest of established players looking to plug holes in their security offerings. (See Machine Learning at Heart of Security M&A Splurge.)

Darktrace serves all industry sectors with its Enterprise Immune System platform, and about 15% of its business is in the telecom and tech space. It separately announced today that it's partnering with Hong Kong's CITIC Telecom CPC, a telecom subsidiary that provides managed security services in Asia. Darktrace also counts BT and Telstra Corp. Ltd. (ASX: TLS; NZK: TLS) amongst its global telco customer base. (See BT, KPMG Highlight Cybersecurity Traps.)

— Sarah Thomas, Circle me on Google+ Follow me on TwitterVisit my LinkedIn profile, Director, Women in Comms

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About the Author

Sarah Thomas

Director, Women in Comms

Sarah Thomas's love affair with communications began in 2003 when she bought her first cellphone, a pink RAZR, which she duly "bedazzled" with the help of superglue and her dad.

She joined the editorial staff at Light Reading in 2010 and has been covering mobile technologies ever since. Sarah got her start covering telecom in 2007 at Telephony, later Connected Planet, may it rest in peace. Her non-telecom work experience includes a brief foray into public relations at Fleishman-Hillard (her cussin' upset the clients) and a hodge-podge of internships, including spells at Ingram's (Kansas City's business magazine), American Spa magazine (where she was Chief Hot-Tub Correspondent), and the tweens' quiz bible, QuizFest, in NYC.

As Editorial Operations Director, a role she took on in January 2015, Sarah is responsible for the day-to-day management of the non-news content elements on Light Reading.

Sarah received her Bachelor's in Journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She lives in Chicago with her 3DTV, her iPad and a drawer full of smartphone cords.

Away from the world of telecom journalism, Sarah likes to dabble in monster truck racing, becoming part of Team Bigfoot in 2009.

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