AI security startup Opsin has raised $21m in a funding round led by venture capital firms SYN Ventures and Race Capital, as businesses look to manage the growing risks associated with the use of autonomous AI agents.
The San Jose-based firm provides security and governance tools designed to monitor AI agents operating across corporate systems, identifying when they access sensitive data or carry out actions beyond their intended purpose. The funding will support expansion of its sales and engineering teams, as adoption of AI agents continues to grow across businesses.
AI agents are increasingly being deployed by employees to carry out tasks across company databases, software and internal workflows. However, their ability to act independently has raised concerns among security teams over the level of access they are given, particularly where confidential information and financial data are involved.
Opsin was founded by James Pham, Oz Wasserman and Jeremy Mailen. Pham, an MIT alumnus, and Wasserman previously worked together at cybersecurity firm Abnormal Security before leaving in 2022 to establish the business.
Pham said he and his co-founders spoke with hundreds of industry professionals while investigating the barriers to wider AI adoption. Concerns around agents accessing and potentially misusing sensitive information emerged as a recurring issue, prompting the company to develop tools to give businesses greater visibility over their activity.
Opsin’s platform allows companies to identify which AI agents are operating within their systems, the data and tools they can access, and the purpose for which they were created. It also provides ongoing monitoring to flag behaviour that could present a security risk.
In one example cited by Pham, an AI agent created by a chief financial officer inadvertently gave other employees high-level access to financial information. The incident highlighted the potential consequences of deploying agents with broad permissions without sufficient oversight.
The platform is designed to work alongside enterprise AI products including Microsoft Copilot and ChatGPT Enterprise, allowing security teams to monitor activity across different tools. The company also aims to help businesses identify excessive permissions and intervene when an agent acts outside its authorised role.
The funding comes as cybersecurity firms look to capitalise on growing corporate investment in artificial intelligence. The expansion of AI agents could create additional vulnerabilities for businesses, with hackers potentially gaining new routes into corporate systems as more software is given access to sensitive information.
Glenn Chisholm, an investor in Opsin through SYN Ventures, told Business Insider that the increasing use of AI products would provide attackers with more potential targets. Cybersecurity has attracted increased investor attention as companies seek to protect their systems while adopting new technologies.
Opsin has around 20 employees and is looking to expand its workforce following the latest investment. The company serves businesses across sectors including healthcare, financial services and manufacturing, where the handling of sensitive information can present additional security challenges.
Pham has argued that monitoring AI agents requires companies to assess their actions and behaviour alongside the permissions they hold. As agents take on more responsibility within businesses, the company expects demand for tools that provide oversight and control to increase.
The investment will also support Opsin’s efforts to develop its platform as companies expand their use of AI agents. Chisholm said he expected businesses to spend the coming years working out how to make greater use of the technology while addressing the risks associated with its adoption.
