April 11, 2024 at 10:48AM
Knostic, a startup founded in late 2023 by cybersecurity veterans Gadi Evron and Sounil Yu, has emerged from stealth mode with $3.3 million in pre-seed funding. They have developed an access control solution for enterprises using generative AI to provide personalized need-to-know access control for large language models, preventing sensitive information sharing.
From the meeting notes, the main takeaways are:
1. Knostic, a startup founded by cybersecurity veterans Gadi Evron and Sounil Yu, emerged from stealth mode with $3.3 million in pre-seed funding on Thursday. The company has developed an access control solution for enterprises using generative AI, specifically providing need-to-know access control for large language models (LLMs).
2. Knostic’s solution prevents chatbots used by enterprises from sharing sensitive information with unauthorized employees and helps enterprises understand their exposure to data leak risks associated with the use of chatbots. It aims to unlock the value of LLMs while simultaneously avoiding business harm.
3. The pre-seed funding round involved participation from Shield Capital, Pitango First, DNX Ventures, Seedcamp, and several angel investors.
4. Knostic was a finalist in the 2024 RSA Conference Launch Pad competition. Ret. Adm. Mike Rogers, former director of the NSA, expressed excitement about the company’s unique approach to need-to-know personalization and its potential impact in the DoD space.
Additionally, there are related news items about other generative AI startups and Microsoft’s release of a red teaming tool for generative AI.