Altman backed AI security startup Apex emerges from stealth
There are a thousand and one ways in which AI can be hacked and "made insecure" and this startup is one of the first dedicated AI cyber security startups.
Key takeaways
- Israeli Artificial Intelligence (AI) security company Apex has announced it has emerged from stealth with $7 million in Seed.
- Since the launch of ChatGPT in 2022, there has been a huge rise in Generative AI capabilities across all industries globally.
- The duo met during their Unit 8200 service where they served as Lieutenant Colonel and Captain, respectively.
Cite or link to this article
Griffin, M. (2024) 'Altman backed AI security startup Apex emerges from stealth', 311 Institute, 4 June. Available at: https://www.311institute.com/altman-backed-ai-security-startup-apex-emerges-from-stealth/ (Accessed: 1 October 2026).
Israeli Artificial Intelligence (AI) security company Apex has announced it has emerged from stealth with $7 million in Seed. The round was co-led by Sequoia Capital and Index Ventures, with participation from angel investors, most notably OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
Since the launch of ChatGPT in 2022, there has been a huge rise in Generative AI capabilities across all industries globally. However, the rapid uptake of AI technologies brings a range of security challenges for businesses, such as data leaks or AI-driven cyberattacks.
Apex has built a security platform that provides organizations with comprehensive visibility of their AI activity. This allows them to define how AI is used across the company and enforce security policies accordingly. Its platform can detect violations of the security standards of the company or industry, and detect and respond to AI attacks so that companies can leverage AI technologies to avoid data leaks, malicious data injection, privacy and legal violations, or cyberattacks.
"Apex was founded with the mission of empowering security and AI teams to enable the secure and swift AI adoption within world-class organizations," said Matan Derman, Co-Founder and CEO at Apex. "During the company's founding, we consulted with dozens of executives to understand their needs and discovered a reluctance to adopt advanced AI due to security concerns. Apex is positioned to change all that, playing a key role in helping organizations secure AI models and applications and enabling them to leverage the power of AI safely."
The company was founded in 2023 by Derman and Tomer Avni, who serves as CPO. The duo met during their Unit 8200 service where they served as Lieutenant Colonel and Captain, respectively. Both hold Master’s degrees from Stanford and Harvard and Apex already caters to various Fortune 500 companies as clients - 80% of which already have employees using ChatGPT for work.
“We are proud to partner with Matan and Tomer, and we are excited to see Apex Security quickly emerging as the leader in generative AI security,” said Bogomil Balkansky, Partner at Sequoia Capital. Shardul Shah, Partner at Index Ventures, added: “As companies start using AI and large language models, they expose themselves to new risks, including data leaks, privacy, intellectual property breaches, or dedicated AI attacks. Apex is focused on resolving this particular dilemma.”
FAQ
Why does this matter?
There are a thousand and one ways in which AI can be hacked and "made insecure" and this startup is one of the first dedicated AI cyber security startups.
About the author
Matthew Griffin Founder, 311 Institute
Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath."
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Matthew Griffin is a multi-award winning Futurist and expert in Disruption and Innovation, Geopolitics, Leadership, and Technology, who NASA have described as a "walking encyclopaedia of the future" and a "futurist Polymath." 15-time best selling author of the "Codex of the Future" series, Matthew is the Founder and Futurist in Chief of the 311 Institute, a global Futures and Deep Futures advisory firm working with royal households, world leaders, G7, G20, and G77 governments, NGOs, and multi-national mid and mega cap firms to help them explore, shape, and lead the next 50 years of business and society.
An award-winning YouTube creator with over a million followers, with an unrivalled global reach and impact, Matthew is a highly sought-after international keynote speaker, lecturer, and mentor who collaborates with global leaders through the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC) and United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) to shape pivotal initiatives such as the UN’s AI for Humanity program, the United Nations Conference of the Parties (UN COP), and the World Economic Forum in Davos.
As the former Global Head of Cloud, National Security, and Enterprise Sales for companies including Atos, Dell-EMC, and IBM, Matthew has a proven track record of building multi-billion dollar business units and turning failing divisions into market leaders. His ability to identify, analyse, and communicate the implications of hundreds of emerging technologies and trends is unparalleled, and his insights are trusted by many of the world’s most respected organisations, including ABB, Accenture, Adidas, AON, ARM, BCG, Centrica, Citi, Coca-Cola, Dentons, Deloitte, Dow Jones, EY, Google, KPMG, Lego, Legal & General, LinkedIn, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Qualcomm, RWE, Samsung, Siemens AG and Siemens Energy, T-Mobile, UBS, VISA, Walmart, Workday, Worldpay and many others.
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Source: first published by the 311 Institute on 4 June 2024. Cite as: Griffin, M. (2024). Altman backed AI security startup Apex emerges from stealth. 311 Institute. https://www.311institute.com/altman-backed-ai-security-startup-apex-emerges-from-stealth/
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