Reflecting on 2024
Axiad capped off a milestone year earlier this month by unveiling Axiad Mesh, the world's first identity risk management solution focused on unifying all identity sources to detect and mitigate risk to the business.
Historically, identity security has been an overlooked area of risk management. Many organizations have struggled to gain comprehensive control over their identity-related processes due to the reliance on fragmented and siloed identity security platforms. These disparate systems often lack integration, leading to inefficiencies, gaps in security coverage, and challenges in maintaining a unified view of identity access across the organization. As a result, businesses have faced increased vulnerabilities, such as unauthorized access, data breaches, and compliance failures.
Furthermore, factors including remote work, software-as-a-service (SaaS) dependencies, and the rapid growth of machine identities have caused identity-related attacks to skyrocket. In fact, according to CyberArk research, 93% of organizations reported multiple identity-related breaches last year.
With attacks up and defenses weak, the need for a more cohesive and proactive approach to identity security has never been more critical—and this is exactly what Axiad Mesh delivers.
Axiad Mesh – An Overview
Axiad Mesh empowers cybersecurity teams to seamlessly and cohesively manage multiple identity security platforms like identity threat detection and response (ITDR), identity security posture management (ISPM), and privileged access management (PAM). With all identity platforms working in unison, teams can gain an understanding of the business risk posed by identities as well as the near precognitive ability to anticipate and address complex attack vectors before they become active threats.
Axiad’s identity-first solution uses powerful, machine learning (ML)-driven technology to identify, quantify, and fortify against identity risks across sprawling enterprise identities at scale—no matter the complexity. Here’s a closer look at each element:
- Identifies identity risk – Provides the connective fabric that joins SaaS and on-premises solutions, enabling companies to discover, visualize, and observe the identities used throughout the enterprise as well as a rich class of identity risks that would otherwise go unnoticed and unchecked.
- Quantifies identity risks – Assigns intuitive risk scores—including severity, probability, and prevalence across the business—to highlight inconsistencies and vulnerabilities. Additionally, trends around attack surface changes are used to predict future risks.
- Fortifies identities against risk – Improves pre-recognition of complex attack vectors using known frameworks like MITRE ATT&CK®. Axiad Mesh improves identity hygiene by automatically detecting and flagging issues like excessive permissions, weak or under-deployed multi factor authentication (MFA), or inconsistent statuses. It also supports automated workflows to remediate these risks without manual intervention, with delegation to management platform workflows for automatic remediation, if needed.
For more information on Axiad Mesh, check out the press release and The Essential Guide to Identity Risk Management.
A Year of Transformation and Growth
Axiad Mesh represents the pinnacle of a transformative year for Axiad. Over the past 12 months, Axiad has taken bold steps to elevate its business trajectory, expand its product offerings, and solidify its position as a trusted partner in identity risk management.
Here’s a closer look at the key milestones that defined Axiad’s remarkable year in 2024:
Strengthening Leadership to Drive Vision and Execution
Axiad made significant strides in assembling a world-class leadership team to advance its growth strategy and refine its product vision:
- February 2024: David Canellos, a seasoned cybersecurity executive with a proven track record in entrepreneurship and scaling businesses, was appointed chief executive officer (CEO). Canellos has already delivered meaningful progress in steering the company toward its ambitious goals, driving both operational excellence and innovative growth strategies.
- April 2024: Axiad welcomed Alex Au Yeung as chief product officer (CPO) and Sergey Starzhinskiy as vice president (VP) of systems engineering, bolstering the company’s ability to deliver innovative, customer-focused solutions.
- September 2024: The leadership team expanded further with the appointments of Brian Szeto as chief financial officer (CFO) and Lynne Boyd as VP of sales, positioning the company for continued financial growth and market expansion.
Securing Growth Capital to Fuel Innovation
In July 2024, Axiad announced a $25 million private equity funding round led by Invictus Growth Partners (Invictus). This significant investment will continue to accelerate product development, enable the hiring of top-tier talent, and enhance sales and marketing efforts. Additionally, it will support the company’s journey toward achieving Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP®) Authority to Operate (ATO).
With this latest funding round, Axiad’s total capital raised now stands at $45 million, building on Invictus’s prior $20 million investment in 2021.
Relocating Headquarters for Collaboration and Accessibility
In September 2024, Axiad moved its headquarters from Santa Clara, California, to a new 5,000-square-footoffice in San Jose, California. The relocation reflects the company’s commitment to fostering collaboration, accessibility, and a strong workplace culture.
The new headquarters provides a modern, open workspace designed to enhance in-person teamwork while offering convenient access to the San Jose airport and public transportation. The move also positions Axiad to attract top-tier talent from San Jose’s prestigious academic institutions and diverse local workforce.
Advancing Product Innovation
In addition to Axiad Mesh, Axiad had a number of other product achievements over the past year. Highlights include:
- Announcing a strategic partnership with GuidePoint Security to broaden market reach.
- Integrating an application programming interface (API) for provisioning FIDO2 security keys (passkeys) for Microsoft Entra ID into Axiad Conductor’s (formerly Axiad Cloud) advanced authentication toolset.
- Securing a major federal agency customer, which will not only use Axiad’s solutions but also sponsor the company as it completes its FedRAMP® certification process.
Demonstrating its commitment to product innovation, Axiad was honored with several award recognitions this year. The Globee Cybersecurity Awards honored Axiad with a gold-level award in the “Passwordless” category, and Axiad was named a Global InfoSec Award winner for “PKI as a Service.” Additionally, Axiad received finalist status in the SINET16Awards and the Microsoft Security Excellence Awards program.
The Path Forward
2024 was a year of transformation for Axiad, defined by strategic leadership appointments, significant funding milestones, a new headquarters, and continuous product innovation. These achievements reflect Axiad’s unwavering commitment to delivering cutting-edge identity security solutions while positioning itself as a leader in the industry.
As Axiad looks ahead to 2025 and beyond, the company is well-poised to continue its upward growth trajectory, leveraging its strong foundation and visionary leadership to tackle the evolving challenges of identity security and deliver unparalleled value to its customers.