This startup raised $26 million to protect data in subsea cables from hackers. Read the pitch deck.

An innovative Israeli startup has emerged from stealth mode with a groundbreaking solution to protect data transmitted through undersea cables, successfully raising $26 million in funding. CyberRidge has developed a unique technology that utilizes light manipulation to obscure data as it traverses fiber-optic cables, whether located on land or beneath the ocean. According to CEO and founder Dan Sadot, if a malicious entity—such as a nation-state—attempts to intercept this data by cutting the cables, they would receive nothing but 'random noise.' Sadot, who is also a professor at Ben-Gurion University with nearly three decades of expertise in optical communication, emphasized that their method ensures data transmission remains unobservable. Subsea cables, comparable in thickness to a garden hose, serve as the backbone of global internet infrastructure and are vital for the economy. Currently, while data is encrypted during its journey through extensive fiber-optic networks, it remains vulnerable to interception and future decryption attempts by advanced quantum computers. Sadot clarified that CyberRidge's technology is designed to complement existing security measures rather than compete against them. The startup's primary offering is a hardware unit that integrates at the ends of fiber cables. This allows users to reconstruct the data using a 'photonic key' that refreshes every fraction of a second. Founded approximately three and a half years ago, CyberRidge was inspired by a suggestion from an Israeli intelligence unit to commercialize this innovative concept. Potential clients for their technology include telecommunications firms, major cloud service providers like Amazon Web Services, and significant banking institutions. The funding for CyberRidge comprises a $10 million seed investment led by Awz Ventures, followed by an additional $15 million from Arkin Capital, Redseed VC, and Elron Ventures. Sadot revealed that the startup aims to transition from prototype development to full-scale production of its hardware by March 2026, utilizing the newly acquired capital.