Upwind reels in $300M for its automated cloud security platform

Upwind Security Inc. has raised an additional $300 million in funding for its automated cloud security platform, bringing its valuation to $3.8 billion. Bessemer and TCV were the leading investors in the Series C round, joined by Salesforce Ventures, Greylock, Craft Ventures, and several other firms. The company's platform maps out cloud assets and updates the data every 30 seconds to account for changes in the environment.

Upwind overcame the challenge of using Linux's kernel for data collection by utilizing eBPF, a feature that deploys observability code in an isolated sandbox to prevent bugs from affecting sensitive kernel modules. The platform collects data on instances, encryption keys, configuration scripts, and other cloud assets, including monitoring AI models and automatically generating AI-BOMs for better visibility of AI application components.

Upwind uses AI to scan cloud assets for vulnerabilities and compares configurations against cybersecurity best practices and regulations. The company has also rolled out integrations with several third-party cloud services in the past month, indicating a focus on expanding the range of systems it can secure for customers.