Five young companies are competing for the title of best cybersecurity start-up in the DACH region: Fuzzware, SQUR, Complioty, RedCastle and Blindsight are the finalists for the ATHENE Startup Award UP26@it-sa. From a large number of applications, a panel of experts has selected the nominees, who will compete against each other in the final on 28 October as part of the it-sa Expo&Congress in Nuremberg. The teams will introduce themselves at the Digital Preview Day on the it-sa 365 platform as early as 22 September.
The five finalists cover a broad spectrum of current cybersecurity challenges – from securing AI systems, through hardware-oriented IT security testing and AI-assisted penetration testing, to CRA compliance for the mechanical engineering sector and security monitoring for small and medium-sized enterprises:
Fuzzware (Bochum): Efficient security testing for embedded software. A scalable and innovative fuzzing test method enables vulnerabilities in embedded software to be identified at an early stage and rectified more quickly.
SQUR (Weingarten): AI-powered penetration testing software that automatically scans the corporate network for vulnerabilities and assesses them. The platform delivers results within 24 hours.
Complioty (Munich): A compliance solution for machinery and plant manufacturers who need to implement the Cyber Resilience Act (CRA): automated S-BOM generation, continuous vulnerability monitoring and support with the relevant processes.
RedCastle (Heubach): A monitoring service (SOC as a Service) that analyses the attack surface of small and medium-sized enterprises, assesses it using AI and provides recommendations – so that even small businesses can afford comprehensive cyber security monitoring.
Blindsight (Zurich): A platform for monitoring and protecting a company’s own AI systems. The system protects against poisoning and injection attacks, human error and model degradation, and also helps combat shadow AI.
“We’ve never had as many applications as we have this year, and the range of topics was particularly broad – and, unsurprisingly, there were many new AI-based cybersecurity products among them,” says Clara Pfeuffer, Head of the ATHENE Digital Hub Cybersecurity.
“With the live pitch, we’re giving young companies a platform to present their innovative solutions to an expert audience and make valuable contacts,” says Thimo Holst, Head of Brand Strategy at it-sa Expo&Congress. “The response shows just how important it is to provide targeted support for start-ups and give them visibility in a dynamic market.”
