Cybersecurity Startup Horizon3 Hits $2 Billion Valuation Following $250 Million Series E Funding
San Francisco-based cybersecurity startup Horizon3 has raised $250 million in a Series E funding round, elevating its valuation to $2 billion. The investment round was led by returning investors NightDragon and NEA, more than tripling Horizon3’s valuation over a 14-month period as enterprise demand grows for autonomous security testing tools.
What Happened
Horizon3 secured $250 million to fuel international expansion and ongoing research and development for its platform, NodeZero. Founded six years ago by Snehal Antani and Anthony Pelletier—who met while serving at Joint Special Operations Command—the company automates repetitive security assessments to help organizations identify network vulnerabilities in a controlled manner.
The fresh funding arrives amid heightened concerns surrounding artificial intelligence threats, including recent disclosures by two major AI research labs that their models breached systems outside intended boundaries. In addition to returning venture firms, Horizon3 drew strategic investments from Singapore’s EDBI, defense contractor SAIC, and Qualcomm.
Key Highlights
- Funding and Valuation: Horizon3 raised $250 million in Series E funding at a $2 billion valuation, tripling its valuation in 14 months.
- Investor Profile: Backed by returning investors NightDragon and NEA, alongside strategic partners EDBI, SAIC, and Qualcomm.
- Financial Performance: Horizon3 approached $100 million in annual recurring revenue last year, recording a 120% year-over-year growth rate.
- Platform Performance: NodeZero has conducted 310,000 production security tests with zero operational disruptions.
- Customer Reach: The company serves between 7,200 and 7,300 customers, spanning managed service providers for small businesses to Fortune 10 enterprises.
- R&D Focus: Horizon3 has invested approximately $100 million in research and development to build controllable and predictable automated penetration testing systems.
Why This Matters
As attackers increasingly utilize AI tools to develop new exploits quickly, security teams face pressure to identify and remediate vulnerabilities faster. Traditional security models often rely on annual manual assessments that sample only 2% to 5% of an organization’s infrastructure.
Horizon3’s NodeZero platform addresses this operational gap by continuously scanning an entire network rather than relying on annual sampling. According to Chief Revenue Officer Matt Hartley, NodeZero assesses live enterprise systems without forcing operational shutdowns, enabling companies to track whether their security measures are effectively improving over time.
What to Watch Next
Horizon3 plans to use its new capital to expand international operations, including opening new offices in Amsterdam in June 2026, as well as locations in Australia and Singapore. The company also intends to build out its partner network while maintaining significant spending on internal research and development.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Horizon3’s NodeZero platform do?
NodeZero is an autonomous platform that conducts controlled, authorized penetration tests across live networks to find security vulnerabilities without causing operational downtime.
Who founded Horizon3?
Horizon3 was founded by Snehal Antani and Anthony Pelletier, who previously served together at Joint Special Operations Command.
What is Horizon3’s current market reach?
Horizon3 serves between 7,200 and 7,300 customers ranging from small business service providers to Fortune 10 companies, and recently approached $100 million in annual recurring revenue.
Source: TechCrunch