A Seattle-based startup led by the ex-CEO of Hexadite has successfully raised $30 million for its new data security strategy. This company, named Mind, focuses on proactive data prevention rather than just providing visibility into security posture after an incident. The Series A funding round was notably led by Paladin Capital Group and also by the firm Crosspoint Capital Partners. This new infusion of capital brings the company’s total fundraising amount to more than $40 million since it was founded in 2023. Mind has been led since its inception by its co-founder and CEO Eran Barak, who previously started the SOAR vendor Hexadite in 2014.
Mind’s unique security strategy is built around proactive data protection by operating directly at the endpoint level where data originates. Their co-founder Barak has stated that providing visibility after the fact is insufficient because by then the data is already gone. The company’s innovative platform uses a lightweight agent that operates across both web-based and various native applications to prevent data leaks. Unlike many other approaches focused on structured data, Mind’s system is capable of classifying domain-specific and also very sensitive unstructured documents. This can include items like pharmaceutical recipes, detailed manufacturing specifications, and even unreleased songs in the entertainment industry, protecting key intellectual property.
The company will use these new Series A funds to double down on its innovative approach to unstructured data security for enterprises. It plans on pushing small language models directly to devices for real-time data classification and also for immediate data flow protection. The company’s artificial intelligence classification engine, which is currently running in the cloud, will be pushed directly to the device itself. Barak explained that these small language models can run on the device and classify all data on the fly without cloud analysis. This provides much more depth and also precision in data protection, as well as significantly greater speed than cloud-based solutions currently offer.
Unlike many early-stage startups that often defer go-to-market execution, Mind has built a scalable marketing and sales infrastructure. The company has already fully automated its entire marketing and lead qualification pipeline, which makes it much easier to scale its outreach. On the sales side, Mind is currently focused on the North American market but already has clear plans to expand into the United Kingdom. It also plans to enter the European Union by the end of 2026, often through its various strategic partners like Paladin. The company now plans to grow its annual recurring revenue to at least $10 million within the next two years on its current path.
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