The landscape of cybersecurity is witnessing a dual transformation, with both attackers and defenders increasingly integrating artificial intelligence into their strategies. A security startup named Depthfirst, which aims to lead in AI-powered defense, revealed on Wednesday that it secured $40 million in a Series A funding round.

Established in October 2024, the company attracted investment led by Accel Partners, with additional contributions from SV Angel, Mantis VC, and Alt Capital. Depthfirst provides a platform known as General Security Intelligence, an AI-native suite designed to help organizations scan and analyze their codebases and workflows for potential security issues.

The platform also enables companies to guard against credential exposures and to monitor threats targeting their open-source and third-party software components. The newly acquired capital will be directed toward expanding the team, with a focus on applied research, engineering, product development, and sales.

“We’ve entered an era where software is written faster than it can be secured,” stated Qasim Mithani, the company’s co-founder and CEO, in the announcement. Mithani, whose previous experience includes roles at Databricks and Amazon, noted that automation has altered how malicious actors carry out their attacks. “AI has already changed how attackers work. Defense has to evolve just as fundamentally.”

The leadership team at Depthfirst brings together expertise in both artificial intelligence and security. Another co-founder, Daniele Perito, formerly held the position of director of security and risk engineering at Square, which is part of Jack Dorsey’s Block. The company’s CTO and co-founder, Andrea Michi, was previously an engineer at Google DeepMind.

While AI serves many legitimate purposes, it is also being leveraged by cybercriminals to automate a wide array of malicious activities, from crafting malware and conducting social engineering attacks to scanning for vulnerabilities to exploit. Last November, Anthropic reported that it had disrupted what it described as the first “AI orchestrated cyber espionage campaign.”

Depthfirst asserts that its technology can assist companies in defending against many of these “AI-driven exploits” and has already established partnerships with several notable firms, including AngelList, Lovable, and Moveworks.