A San Francisco venture capital firm has filed paperwork with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission this week to raise $360 million for its third flagship fund—the same size as its previous fund raised in 2024—along with another $130 million for a separate vehicle named Ballistic Ventures Fund B. At the time of filing, neither fund had recorded any sales.

These fundraising plans arrive as the growing adoption of artificial intelligence fuels concerns about increasingly sophisticated cyberattacks. The emergence of AI agents has simultaneously opened new opportunities for cybersecurity startups and the venture capital firms that back them.

Founded in late 2021, Ballistic Ventures' founding team includes Schlein, former AT&T Cybersecurity president Barmak Meftah, and Roger Thornton, who co-founded the security companies Fortify Software and AlienVault. The firm has backed companies such as Talon Cyber Security, which was acquired by Palo Alto Networks, and Pangea, which was bought by CrowdStrike, along with startups including Armadin, GetReal, Nudge Security, and Oligo Security. However, its investment strategy resembles those of other cybersecurity-focused investors, including Forgepoint Capital and Ten Eleven Ventures, according to a person familiar with the matter.

In 2022, Ballistic announced its $300 million debut fund and raised another $360 million for its second flagship fund two years later. It also raised approximately $130 million for a separate vehicle called Ballistic Ventures Fund A, according to PitchBook data. The new Fund B is targeting a similar amount.

U.S. cybersecurity startups raised $11.5 billion in 2025—the highest since 2022—according to a recent report by JPMorgan Chase citing PitchBook data. AI-enabled companies accounted for roughly 72% of U.S. cybersecurity venture deals through May this year, compared with 36% in 2019, the report said.

Separately, Microsoft, in its annual Digital Defense Report released last month, warned that hackers are increasingly using AI for activities ranging from phishing and social engineering to malware development. The technology is enabling attackers to operate faster and at greater scale, even as many of their underlying techniques remain unchanged.

Ballistic Ventures declined to comment on its fundraising plans.