We are pleased to announce the successful closure of a pre-Series A round of USD 3.5M of SecureThings.ai (a deep-tech automotive cybersecurity startup) led by Inflexor Ventures.
About the Transaction:
SecureThings is an IP driven deep-tech venture in the automotive cybersecurity domain. They have specialized Machine Learning based cybersecurity solutions for all automobiles, be it a commercial vehicle, a passenger vehicle, an electric vehicle, or a motorbike.
Automotive Cybersecurity being a global problem, a $7.23 billion opportunities in 2021 and is projected to reach $32.41 billion by 2030. Key Venture conducted an in-depth analysis of the sector (globally and in India), to identify the core components of the tech stack which differentiate the company from its peers. This helped the Company generate interest from deep tech VC funds and veteran investors of the industry.
“What drew us to SecureThings was their deep expertise in cybersecurity and its various problem statements; everything ranging from telematics systems to cloud platforms to intelligent automation. The multi-layer solution they are developing will have wide-ranging impacts in the automotive sector in the years to come. Coupled with the large-scale adoption of IoT that is expected shortly and the regulatory push by authorities worldwide, we believe that SecureThings has a huge potential.”, said Venkat Vallabhaneni, Managing Partner, Inflexor Ventures.
Sandeep Singhal, senior Advisor, Avaana Capital and ex-MD, Nexus Venture Partners, said, “As the EV revolution transforms our vehicles into ‘computers on wheels’ with connectivity to central servers and personal devices, cybersecurity has become a mission-critical issue. SecureThings is bringing the cybersecurity paradigm from the computing world to the automotive space and addressing threats at each layer of the connected vehicle. There is a global market to target, and we are excited with the traction that the team is seeing.”
Nidhi Saraf, Founder of Key Venture said “With the growing use of technology in industries such as logistics, passenger transport, ride-sharing and usage-based insurance; automotive cybersecurity will be a requirement and the backbone for such solutions. The solution being offered by SecureThings will not only protect the passengers but also ensure commerce can grow at an unfettered pace.”
The round also saw participation from institutions such as 9Unicorns, RPG Ventures and SAB Holdings (Sandeep Singhal’s family office) and various UHNIs including Shirish Shankhe (Senior Partner, McKinsey India), Karan Maheshwari (Maheshwari Family Office), Javed Tapia (Chairman, Clover Infotech) and Manish Bharti (CRO, CoreStack).
Key Venture’s Role
Key Venture acted as the Sole Financial Advisor for the Transaction.
Vishal Bajpai founder of SecureThings.ai notes “Key Venture was able to understand our tech stack and identify the value we generate for the automotive ecosystem. Their understanding of technology and its impact across businesses helped us in positioning our solution correctly in front of investors and generating great interest. They handheld us throughout the journey. Their understanding of the challenges a young startup faces in business operations helped us close this round in a seamless manner.”
Sandeep Singhal further mentioned, “Key Venture was instrumental in helping Vishal to manage a complex investment structure across the US parent and the Indian subsidiary given the investor interest across both geographies.”
Harsha Mundhada, Inflexor Ventures added, “Key Venture actively supported Vishal during the entire investment process. They handheld the Company during the entire due diligence and documentation process to ensure timely closure of the transaction.”
About the Company:
SecureThings.ai is headquartered in Silicon Valley, USA and has an R&D centre in Pune, India. It offers end-to-end solutions through its five-pronged approach for vehicle security: detection, response, recovery, identification, and protection to OEMs, Tier1 suppliers, and Subsystem Manufacturers using patented machine learning-based solutions. The company’s threat intelligence and cloud protection platforms offer complete control, comprehensive monitoring, and effective resolution methodologies to the OEMs, shared services operators, and fleet managers.
SecureThings.ai’s Cloud platform provides an active defence that searches for external vulnerabilities, and new attack chains are integrated with the automotive security operations centre correlation engine. In addition, the platform provides insights and accurate information about fleets’ potentially vulnerable vehicles, thus creating actionable plans to mitigate risks. For OEMs, critical and dangerous Cybersecurity vulnerabilities are detected and resolved using secure over-the-air updates.
The investment will enable SecureThings to establish its presence in the USA along with deepening its presence in India and APJ.
About Key Venture:
Key Venture is an Investment Bank that helps early and growth-stage companies in mergers and acquisitions and raising capital from institutions (VCs, PEs and corporates), family offices and HNIs.
Nidhi Saraf, Founder & CEO, [email protected]
Hars Saraf, Co-Founder & COO, [email protected]