New York-based cybersecurity startup Linx Security has secured $50 million in a Series B funding round led by the same core group of investors who backed cloud security giant Wiz in its early days. The funding, announced this week, will fuel the company's mission to build what it calls the next generation of AI-powered identity security.
Founded in 2023 by CEO Israel Duanis and Niv Goldenberg, Linx counts Index Ventures, Cyberstarts, and Insight Partners among its investors. Wiz's founders are also angel investors in the venture. The deal highlights continued strong investor appetite for cybersecurity solutions, particularly those leveraging artificial intelligence.
Addressing the Identity Crisis
While Wiz focused on cloud security, Linx is targeting the identity security market, which its founders believe is at an inflection point similar to cloud security several years ago. "The market now is experiencing on the identity front what cloud was experiencing five to seven years ago," said Duanis in an interview.
This shift is driven by data showing that nearly 90% of security incidents now involve identity-related failures, according to a study from Palo Alto Networks. Linx's platform aims to continuously map every identity across an organisation and take automated action when it detects anomalous activity.
Autopilot for Security
The centrepiece of Linx's approach is a product called Autopilot, described as an autonomous agent that monitors identity activity and can remediate issues without human intervention. "We understand there's a huge amount of attacks happening now on a daily basis, and it's only going to continue," Duanis stated. "We will give you something to be proactive."
Investors were drawn to the company's AI-native architecture. "I liked the fact that it's really ready for the AI world," said Teddie Wardi, a managing partner at Insight Partners. "Those were the things that got us excited that it's not just a Band-Aid. It's something that is a big, bold bet that will reinvent this industry."
A Crowded but Evolving Market
Linx enters a market long dominated by legacy identity governance providers like SailPoint and Saviynt. Duanis argues these older systems, designed for periodic reviews, are ill-equipped for the real-time demands of modern, AI-driven threats. "When you look at the companies that were founded 20 years ago, they had a mission to go and solve things more periodically," he said. "Now all of a sudden you need to make sure to do that in real time."
The funding reflects a broader resurgence in cybersecurity investment. Data from Crunchbase indicates that cybersecurity startups raised roughly $18 billion in 2025, a sharp increase from the prior year and one of the strongest years since the 2021 peak.
The AI Arms Race
Wardi framed the investment as part of a necessary technological arms race in defence. "Nowadays, it's the bad guy with the AI versus the good guy with the AI," he said. "If you don't have AI-enabled solutions on the defender side, it's a really tough environment."
The deal follows the recent closure of Google's blockbuster $32 billion all-cash acquisition of Wiz, a transaction that underscores the strategic importance major tech companies place on advanced cloud and AI security capabilities.