Novee, an emerging player in AI offensive security, has officially launched from stealth mode, announcing it has secured $51.5 million in funding. This funding round, led by YL Ventures, Canaan Partners, and Oren Zeev of Zeev Ventures, reflects one of the fastest funding trajectories in the active cybersecurity landscape, achieved within just four months of the company’s founding.
Novee aims to combat the growing threat of AI-powered cyberattacks with its proprietary AI pentesting platform. This innovative solution mimics the tactics of real attackers, uncovering novel vulnerabilities and delivering tailored fixes that organizations require to defend against an increasingly complex threat landscape. The urgency for such solutions has intensified as cybercriminals adopt AI technologies to automate reconnaissance and exploit weaknesses with unprecedented speed.
“Attackers don’t wait for your annual pentest. Neither should your defense,” stated Ido Geffen, co-founder and CEO of Novee. Geffen emphasized the need for security teams to have access to high-signal findings that expose exploitable vulnerabilities. The platform has already assisted various organizations, including those in financial services and healthcare, in identifying and mitigating hundreds of vulnerabilities before they can be exploited.
The platform’s edge lies in its ability to conduct continuous penetration testing, a method that transforms traditional offensive security practices. Current penetration testing methods are often episodic and reliant on human workflows, leaving organizations vulnerable as adversaries adapt quickly. Novee’s continuous, AI-driven approach aims to close this gap by simulating sophisticated hacking techniques and validating exploits automatically.
Novee’s AI capabilities are particularly noteworthy. Unlike traditional AI penetration testing platforms that utilize generic models, Novee employs a proprietary, purpose-trained AI model designed specifically for offensive security. This model was trained on real-world exploitation techniques and demonstrated superior performance, outperforming leading large language models (LLMs) by over 55% on constrained web exploitation challenges, achieving up to 90% accuracy compared to the 65% typical for general-purpose models.
“Novee’s benchmarks show a clear performance advantage for their proprietary AI pentesting model over frontier LLMs,” noted Tal Shapira, Ph.D., CTO at Reco AI. Shapira highlighted that the effectiveness of Novee’s model is measured through live exploit execution, rather than relying on proxy metrics, reinforcing the importance of specialized models in tackling adversarial cybersecurity challenges.
Novee was founded in May 2025 by a team of elite offensive security leaders, including Ido Geffen, Gon Chalamish, and Omer Ninburg, all veterans of Israel’s most prestigious cyber programs. The founders’ extensive experience in nation-state offensive security operations lends credibility to the platform’s capabilities.
“Novee is built by a team that has spent decades operating at the highest levels of offensive cyber and critical infrastructure defense,” commented Yoav Leitersdorf, Managing Partner at YL Ventures. He underscored the company’s understanding of the shifting dynamics between attackers and defenders, especially in an era where AI rapidly alters the cybersecurity landscape.
The company’s swift ascent has attracted attention from significant investors who see the urgency in the current cybersecurity climate. “As cybersecurity enters an AI-driven arms race, enterprises need continuous penetration testing—and Novee is delivering exactly that,” said Joydeep Bhattacharyya, General Partner at Canaan Ventures. He noted that within mere months, Novee has secured strategic customers across various sectors, including technology and manufacturing.
As cyber threats evolve and become more sophisticated, Novee positions itself as a crucial player in the offensive security domain. The company is poised to redefine how organizations defend against cyber threats in real-time, moving beyond traditional, periodic testing methods. For more information and to explore its offerings, visit novee.security.
About Novee
Novee is an AI penetration testing platform built to secure constantly changing environments against attackers operating at machine speed. With its purpose-trained AI, Novee uncovers novel attack paths and delivers precise, personalized fixes, allowing teams to stay one step ahead of hackers. Founded by national-level offensive security leaders, Novee has rapidly gained traction and investment, reflecting its innovative approach to cybersecurity.
About YL Ventures
YL Ventures is a venture capital firm focused exclusively on cybersecurity, partnering with top Israeli founders to build leading companies in the sector. With nearly two decades of experience, YL Ventures supports the next generation of Israeli cybersecurity innovation and operates with offices in Silicon Valley and Tel Aviv.
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