New Opaque Systems platform offers advances in confidential AI and analytics

Secure data analytics startup Opaque Systems Inc. today launched a new platform that includes what it says are the latest advancements in confidential artificial intelligence and analytics.

The Opaque platform has been built to unlock use cases in confidential computing to enable data scientists to secure and perform collaborative analytics directly on this encrypted data. The platform accelerates confidential computing use cases by enabling data scientists to leverage their existing SQL and Python skills to run analytics and machine learning while working with confidential data.

Through the platform, data scientists can overcome the data analytics challenges inherent in TEEs on account of their strict protection of how data is accessed and used.

Confidential computing provides a solution using TEEs or enclaves that encrypt data during computation, isolating it from access, exposure and threats. However, Opaque Systems argue that TEEs have historically been challenging for data scientists because of the restricted access to data, lack of tools that enable data sharing and collaborative analytics, and the highly specialized skills needed to work with data encrypted in TEEs.

The Opaque Platform overcomes the challenges inherent in processing enclaved data by providing a multi-party confidential analytics and AI solution that makes it possible to run frictionless analytics on encrypted data within TEEs. The platform also enables secure data sharing and enables multiple parties to perform collaborative analytics while ensuring each party only has access to the data they own.

“Traditional approaches for protecting data and managing data privacy leave data exposed and at risk when being processed by applications, analytics and machine learning models,” explained Rishabh Poddar, co-founder and chief executive officer of Opaque Systems. “The Opaque Confidential AI and Analytics Platform solves this challenge by enabling data scientists and analysts to perform scalable, secure analytics and machine learning directly on encrypted data within enclaves to unlock confidential computing use cases.”

The Opaque Confidential AI and Analytics Platform is designed to ensure that both code and data within enclaves are inaccessible to other users or processes that are collocated on the system. Organizations can encrypt their confidential data on-premises, accelerate the transition of sensitive workloads to enclaves in confidential computing clouds and analyze encrypted data while ensuring it is never unencrypted during the lifecycle of the computation.

Key capabilities include secure data sharing and privacy allowing teams to securely share data protected in TEEs while adhering to regulatory and compliance policies. Data protection throughout the lifecycle ensures that all sensitive data is protected, including personally identifiable information, using advanced encryption and secure hardware enclave technology.

Security, policy enforcement and governance leverage multiple layers of security, including Intel Software Guard Extensions, secure enclaves, advanced cryptography and policy enforcement to provide defense in depth, ensuring code and data integrity and side-channel attack protection.

Opaque Systems was previously in the news in June when it raised $22 million in new funding. Investors in the company include Walden Catalyst Management, Storm Ventures, Thomvest Ventures, Intel Capital, Race Capital, The House Fund and Factory HQ Fund.

Image: Opaque Systems