Securing the future of AI technology through strategic partnership
HiddenLayer is the leading provider of Security for AI. A company forged in the fires of AI and ML security, its comprehensive platform helps enterprises safeguard the machine learning models behind their most important products. HiddenLayer is the only company to offer turnkey security for AI without exponentially increasing the complexity of models or requiring access to raw data and algorithms.
The company’s deep understanding of security infrastructure and its team’s first-hand experience staring down ML and AI-centric compromises appealed to M12. In September 2023, M12 co-led a $50M A-round investment in HiddenLayer. Its proactive monitoring and responsive capabilities for AI only helped to reinforce M12’s decision to invest in HiddenLayer, as they contribute significantly to enhancing security in one of M12’s key thesis areas.
Keeping ahead in a fast-moving marketspace
From the outset, HiddenLayer’s CEO and co-founder Christopher “Tito” Sestito understood that the pace at which AI was progressing required HiddenLayer to move even faster.
After an exhaustive search of more than 200 firms in the seed round,
Tito was laser-focused on the criteria he sought in the company’s A-round partner.
“We chose M12 for their deep expertise in AI and cybersecurity and their strong reputation. Their team’s AI knowledge and experience, combined with their ability to help us navigate the Microsoft ecosystem, made them the ideal partner,” Sestito says.
Standing tall in the land of giants
Standing out in a rapidly expanding field like security for AI is a formidable yet critical challenge startups must navigate. The sheer number of players entering the market, all vying for the attention of customers, partners, and industry leaders, makes differentiation and validation that much more critical.
HiddenLayer immediately felt the impact of the M12 brand, the company’s reach, and its unparalleled reputation when it came to opening doors and allowing them to shine.
“As a two-year-old company, partnering with M12 gave us instant validation,” Sestito says. “Hundreds of startups are trying to have the same conversation with customers, and working with M12 helped get us ‘in the room.’ That in itself was an endorsement. Once there, it was up to us to showcase our technology and ability to deliver.”
The management at HiddenLayer was impressed with more than just M12’s credentials and connections. The team M12 assembled to help guide HiddenLayer was equally accomplished and impressive.
“M12 is well known for its representation of Microsoft, but they deserve credit for being incredible investors on their own as well. They are plugged into the AI world and understand both the complexity of the technology and the nuances of navigating life as a startup. The experience Todd, Cat, Tina, and Michelle brought to the table, as well as the advice and hands-on guidance they have been able to provide, has been integral to our growth and success.”
The hub of AI innovation
From their customers to their design partners, Microsoft is at the center of all things artificial intelligence. They were able to immediately plug HiddenLayer into this ecosystem, allowing them to actively engage with the very people their products are designed to protect. The constant exposure to bleeding-edge AI technologies and the ability to engage directly with companies setting the pace in the generative AI space helped inform the HiddenLayer roadmap, steering its platform and ensuring it remains relevant to its core customer base.
“Partnering with M12 has been a massive benefit for us. We have received crucial guidance that has helped us avoid the missteps that often sweep up startups like ours. M12 is so plugged into the AI community that it helped with a lot of the heavy lifting of making early connections. We have met the right people, and M12 has played a pivotal role in accelerating both our technology and market presence.”
Christopher Sestito
CEO and co-founder, HiddenLayer
The partnership continues
As Split, M12, and Microsoft continue to collaborate, the sky’s the limit. Split recently partnered with the Microsoft team to develop an Azure DevOps integration that brings Split’s feature management directly to Microsoft deployment pipelines and Azure Boards. In 2024, Split and Microsoft will be launching Azure Experiment, which will bring Split’s experimentation capabilities natively into Azure.
“We’re changing the way software development work gets done,” Bell says. “We are creating a world where incremental improvements are released constantly; where trying new ideas is encouraged, expected, and obvious; where every feature is behind a flag, controlled, and measured by a confident developer who wouldn’t have it any other way.”
