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Cleo Capital , the early - stage venture fund that counts the AI firm Groq , fintech company Ellevest , and way brand Hill House as investment funds , has announced the launch ofa new cybersecurity throttle valve .
The program is looking for pre - source and seed party fromall around the world . The accelerator is a remote , 12 - week syllabus , with a received investment funds of $ 250,000 for 7 % equity . Up to 10 companies will be selected for the program , agree to the venture fund .
Sarah Kunst , the founding father and managing pardner of Cleo Capital , say she was animate to launch the catalyst after seeing how much fraud was happening in crypto and fintech , which she invest in , and with dating apps like Bumble , where Kunst serve as an advisor .
Kunst told TechCrunch that after hearing history from her father and nonagenarian grandmother experiencing cyber threats and fraud hitting small Ithiel Town in America where they endure , “ you know it ’s out of restraint , ” she said .
Cybersecurity threats are becoming progressively pricey , specially as AI becomes more sophisticated : In 2023 , the FBI find that Americanslost more than $ 12.5 billionto cybercrime , which let in romance fraudsters and bastard legal fees . That ’s more than double the increase from the combined $ 11 billion stolen from Americans over 2020 and 2021 , according to the agency ’s most recent data .
But where there are cybersecurity problem , there is also plentiful space for invention . Venture funding hasflooded the cybersecurity sphere in recent years , with need on the rebound froma sluggish 2023 . Several constituted cybersecurity companiesgot minted and attain “ unicorn ” statusthis year , including Chainguard , Huntress , and Bugcrowd , as TechCrunch antecedently describe .
“ Cybersecurity investor order me it was a blank space where only enterprise startups could thrive , but I reject that idea , ” Kunst said . “ Ninety percent of Americans are face with cybersecurity issue , most in their consumer lives or on their consumer devices . This is a monolithic chance that ’s far too important to pass up . ”
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Right now , Kunst is looking for companies from consumer , the defense sector , and dev tools and substructure . A pressing issue for Kunst is that it ’s too sluttish for scammers to point their dupe . “ you may sham to be anyone on social medium or a dating app , ” she said .
That ’s why she require to address the “ suppress onus ” of the cyberspace becoming “ unusable ” in the face of online cybersecurity threats . Kunst talks about seeing more on-line assay-mark to prove who people are , or pecker that alert substance abuser to potential scams , apps that can helpprotect against administration - backed cyberattacksor any tool that a startup can use to ensure their product is safer . All the while , companies shouldconsider the upshot on user privacyof the products that they ’re build .
The deadline to lend oneself to the accelerator is January 20 , with a February 24 jump date .
“ This is a small start of a giant industry , ” she aver . “ We need and merit an cyberspace that has some amount of trust and security . Cleo is fund that shift . ”
