Duality Technologies raises $16 million Series A to provide secure computing across all market segments

Duality Technologies, the US-Israeli company providing privacy-preserving data analysis tools, has announced a $16 million Series A led by Intel Capital with support from Hearst Ventures and existing investor, Team8.

As data-driven operations take over the global economy, Duality’s SecurePlus platform enables multiple parties to collaborate on sensitive data while preserving privacy and complying with ever-expanding and evolving regulations. The platform, built on homomorphic encryption, overcomes privacy challenges across various market segments. The company cited the following applied areas: banks investigating financial crime across institutions and borders, retailers and their supply chain partners interested in data monetization collaborations, and scientists cooperating on rare disease and genomics research.

CEO and co-founder Dr. Alon Kaufman commented on the need for Duality’s platform and the new investment: “AI and Machine Learning are transforming countless industries, but they have also created new privacy challenges that regulation alone can’t solve. We are excited by the investment of Intel Capital, Hearst Ventures and Team8 in Duality, and look forward to collaborating with these industry leaders in delivering innovative privacy-enhanced solutions to the market. Our mission is to reconcile data utility and privacy while unlocking a whole new world of secure collaborative business opportunities for our customers.” “The ability to secure data during analysis is a critical component in the future computation stack, specifically in the context of AI. Intel Capital has been following the space closely, and we are excited to see secure computing and homomorphic encryption becoming practical and broadly applicable,” said Anthony Lin, Vice President & Senior Managing Director of Intel Capital. “We believe privacy-preservation in AI and ML represents a huge market need, and we’re investing in Duality because of its unique founding team and world-leading expertise in both advanced cryptography and data science.”  The funding comes after a period of collaboration between Duality and Intel: In June 2018, the two announced a joint effort to explore the use of homomorphic encryption to minimize data exposure in AI. Kenneth Bronfin, senior managing director of Hearst Ventures, also commented: “Sensitive data is constantly being generated by both individuals and businesses; there needs to be technology available that protects such data while allowing us to extract insights. We are excited by Duality’s mission and its ability to deliver complex technology to real-world use cases and applications.”