SAN FRANCISCO: AirMDR, a cybersecurity startup specializing in AI-native Managed Detection and Response (MDR), announced Wednesday it has raised $15.5 million in seed funding to accelerate product development and expand go-to-market efforts.
The round was led by Race Capital, with continued support from Foundation Capital and Storm Ventures. The latest $10.5 million infusion builds on an earlier $5 million seed round.
AirMDR plans to use the funding to enhance its flagship AI Security Operations Center (SOC) platform and scale its sales and marketing operations. The company aims to bring enterprise-grade cybersecurity to small and midsize businesses (SMBs), a segment often underserved by traditional MDR providers and managed security service providers (MSSPs).
“Our mission is to bring Fortune 500-quality SOC to every enterprise at an affordable price,” said Kumar Saurabh, co-founder and CEO of AirMDR. “By combining AI analysts with a 24/7 team of expert human analysts, we deliver a hybrid model that provides a second layer of defense tailored to the needs of modern MDR buyers.”
AirMDR’s AI analysts autonomously triage 100% of alerts in real time, while human analysts validate and refine the results. The platform supports over 200 integrations and offers automated playbooks for rapid threat investigation, response, and containment.
The company’s approach has already gained traction. At the 2025 Black Hat Startup Spotlight Competition, AirMDR was recognized for its innovation in AI-driven security operations.
Hans Gustavson, CISO of Workato, praised the platform’s impact: “AirMDR has significantly accelerated our time to value. Today, it triages nearly 80% of our security findings, allowing our SOC team to focus on the most critical threats.”
Saurabh, a veteran of cybersecurity firms including ArcSight, Sumo Logic, and LogicHub, co-founded AirMDR with CTO Srikant Vissamsetti, who previously co-founded IntruVert and Attivo Networks.
Investors see AirMDR as a key player in a rapidly growing market. “We believe AirMDR’s AI SOC will lower costs, improve cybersecurity, and contribute to a market expected to double by the end of 2025,” said Sid Trivedi, partner at Foundation Capital.
David Gruber, principal analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group, added, “AI-native MDRs are reshaping the economics and scalability of threat detection and response for SMBs. AirMDR is at the forefront of this transformation.”
Alfred Chuang, managing partner at Race Capital, emphasized the strength of the founding team: “Kumar Saurabh is one of those relentless founders we look to support. We’re proud to back AirMDR’s mission to create a safer world for businesses.”