RSA Conference, the world’s leading cybersecurity conferences and expositions, announced that starting in April 2025, the Top 10 Finalists in the RSAC Innovation Sandbox (ISB) contest will receive financing to help them further accelerate innovation to fight the next generation of cybersecurity threats. The investment program will provide these startups with additional capital to deliver solutions that help organizations defend against the increasing volume and complexity of cybersecurity attacks.
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The RSAC™ ISB contest, celebrating its 20th anniversary in 2025, has become the world’s premier showcase for the cybersecurity startup community. Some of the most successful cybersecurity innovators have competed in the RSAC ISB contest in order to highlight their game-changing ideas that have disrupted the cybersecurity industry. The contest has grown to receive roughly 150 applicants annually, forming an important source of innovation and ideation that has been essential in addressing ever-changing cybersecurity challenges. More than 750 investors, cybersecurity leaders, entrepreneurs and members of the press join the packed audience to watch the ISB event live.
The RSAC ISB contest has become a preeminent platform within the cybersecurity community, providing increased visibility and awareness to the Top 10 Finalists each year. Since the RSAC ISB contest’s inception, companies named as Top 10 Finalists have collectively raised over $16.4 billion* in investments and been involved in over 90 merger and acquisition transactions. Each year, a panel of independent judges selects the Top 10 Finalists after reviewing the applicants’ submissions. At RSA Conference in San Francisco, each Top 10 Finalist presents an overview of their business, and a winner is selected by an independent panel of judges drawn from the cybersecurity community. Starting in 2025, the Top 10 Finalists will each receive a $5 million uncapped Simple Agreement for Future Equity (SAFE) investment, provided by Crosspoint Capital Partners.
“Attackers are constantly adapting and changing their tradecraft. Continuous innovation from cybersecurity startups is essential to global cyber defense,” said Dr. Hugh Thompson, Executive Chairman and long-serving program chair of RSA Conference, and Managing Partner of Crosspoint Capital Partners. “Historically, the RSAC Innovation Sandbox competition has anointed winners in cybersecurity long before they became winners in the marketplace. We are excited to introduce simplified, founder-friendly financing for the companies selected by the independent and neutral process of the RSAC Innovation Sandbox to further fuel cybersecurity innovation.”
For many industry-leading cybersecurity companies, the ISB platform has been an important part of their journey. “When Wiz participated in the RSAC Innovation Sandbox contest in 2021, we were a young company in an emerging cybersecurity category,” said Anthony Belfiore, Chief Security and Strategy Officer of Wiz. “The exposure that we received from the ISB platform and RSA Conference helped us attract more customers earlier in our journey. This was extremely helpful for us. This new investment program is a game-changer.”
The investment program is delivered as an uncapped SAFE, which provides an immediate capital infusion while maintaining future fundraising flexibility. “Post Series A investment, subsequent rounds have trended to be larger with multiple investors. A valued security investor like Crosspoint Capital with the deep operational experience of their founding partners would be welcomed into the cap table,” said Theresia Gouw, co-founding partner, Acrew Capital.
In addition to the investment capital, RSAC is also developing a new forum, the RSAC Founders Circle, to provide past and present ISB Top 10 Finalists with additional exposure, coaching, mentorship and connections with the CISO community. This initiative will also serve as a powerful alumni network for these distinguished entrepreneurs. Multiple ISB finalists have gone on to become standalone public companies while others become attractive acquisitions for platform assets. These previous Top 10 Finalists include leading cybersecurity innovators such as: Wiz, Imperva, SentinelOne, Talon Cyber Security, Phantom Cyber, and Hidden Layer.
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