CultureAI, a startup that has developed software to detect employees’ risky cyber behaviour, has closed a $10m (£7.7m) Series A funding round.
The funding was jointly led by Mercia Ventures and Smedvig Ventures, with participation from existing investors Passion Capital and Senovo.
Founded in 2018, the Manchester-based startup is used by IT workers and cybersecurity professionals to analyse behavioural data and spot risky actions that could jeopardise their company’s cyber defences.
It tracks when employees make security-compromising actions, such as repeating passwords, keeping business information on unauthorised apps, and interacting with phishing attempts. Based on these findings, CultureAI can then provide targeted coaching to employees on good cyber practice.
Despite a rise in the number of awareness and training programs used by businesses over the years, research firm Forrester predicts that 90% of data breaches in 2024 will involve human error.
Backed by the fresh funding, CultureAI is looking to educate and support more businesses in detecting and managing cyber risks in the workplace – particularly as new potential threats such as generative AI emerge.
James Moore, founder and CEO of CultureAI, said: “Imagine having a team of thousands who deeply understand your business and its employees. If this team could review, understand, and fix risks generated by each employee at the source, breaches could be reduced by around 80%. While it’s impractical to build such a team, we can emulate its effectiveness using intelligent technology.”
Moore added: “Addressing human risk is crucial for cybersecurity. Every day, one in four employees create cyber risks as they go about their jobs, from reusing passwords across shadow SaaS apps to oversharing intellectual property with AI tools. We’re all human and make mistakes.”
CultureAI’s notable clients include Revolut, Wickes, Delivery Hero, ClearBank, and Marie Curie.
The Series A funding comes a year after CultureAI secured $5m from a series of investors and three years after its $4m investment in 2021. Its total investment to date is around $19m.