Operational technology cybersecurity startup Shift5 raises $50M for product development

Operational technology cybersecurity startup Shift5 Inc. announced today it has raised $50 million in new funding to make significant investments in product development and new talent across all its teams to keep pace with demand across transportation and national defense industries.

Insight Partners led the Series B round. The new funding follows Shift5 raising $20 million Series A in October, along with signing a contract with the U.S. Special Operations Command the same month. Including the new funding, Shift5 has raised $72.5 million to date, according to data from Crunchbase.

Founded in 2019, Shift5 offers operational technology cybersecurity that defends military platforms and critical transportation systems from cyberattacks,

The company is seeking to address OT issues among rail operators, airlines and militaries that are often teeming with digital components that were developed before the advent of modern cybersecurity solutions. Rail, aviation and defense assets have become increasingly connected to outward-facing networks, making them significantly more vulnerable over time.

Shift5 argues that OT cybersecurity failures on these systems can jeopardize business and mission operations, create safety risks for operators, personnel and passengers, and also incur millions of dollars in downtime losses, remediation and ransom payments.

Shift5 protects the undersecured OT layer of transportation and weapon systems, providing aviation, rail and metro systems and military defenders complete visibility into their OT networks. Using the company’s platform, operators can apply cybersecurity best practices to the operation of these critical systems, dramatically reducing their cyber risk. The service allows operators to gain visibility, detect threats and maintain the resilience of OT systems as cybersecurity physical attacks become an increasingly likely and attractive strategy for digital attackers.

“Evolution in cybersecurity technology has historically occurred alongside innovation in the threat landscape: we’re seeing attacks now beyond the traditional network and endpoint vectors to other parts of the landscape like IoT, medical devices and operational technology that have grave consequences when disrupted,” Shift5 President Joe Lea said in a statement. “This cat and mouse game is bleeding into critical infrastructure, and defenders must extend their purview to encompass operational technology.

Shift5 says it has seen rapid growth, which is not surprising given the growing awareness of supply chain attacks such as Colonial Pipeline Co. in May. The company claims eight-figure annual recurring revenue in its first year of product sales, multiple seven-figure deals in 2021 and a 200% increase in employee headcount.

Image: Shift5