Corsha raises $18M for next-gen authentication platform, ‘like Okta for machines'
Startup profile: Cosha
Founded by: Anusha Iyer
Year founded: 2018
Headquarters: Vienna, VA
Sector: Cybersecurity
Funding and valuation: Raised $33 million to date, valuation undisclosed
Key ecosystem partners: SineWave Ventures, Razor's Edge Ventures, Department of Defense
A Northern Virginia cybersecurity firm that specializes in machine-to-machine authentication just landed millions of dollars to scale its services, hire staff and establish a research lab.
Corsha, which today announced an $18 million Series A-1, builds identity security technology for operational systems and critical infrastructure. The tech is similar to what's used for human identity authentication — think logging into your work device or bank account — but instead of people, it's for machines, Corsha founder and CEO Anusha Iyer explained.
'If we look at that world and think about how systems are logging in, and proving their identity, and setting up their access to talk to something else, it's still stuck in the dark ages,' Iyer told Technical.ly. 'Effectively, we're like an Okta for machines.'
Founded in 2018, the Vienna-headquartered startup boasts high profile government customers like the US Air Force, and Iyer hopes to use these funds to expand the Corsha's technology into commercial uses. Tech giant Dell is a design partner, so is bringing the tech into its labs as an early adopter, per Iyer.
McLean-based SineWave Ventures led the round, with participation from Reston's Razor's Edge Ventures and San Mateo County, California's Ten Eleven Ventures (both of the latter firms took part in Corsha's $12 million Series A in 2022).
It was Corsha's usefulness at the intersection of government and commercial applications that stood out to SineWave partner Pat Muoio, whose relevant experience includes a stint as NSA chief of cybersecurity research. SineWave focuses on commercial companies that could bring value to the government space, Muoio said, including in cybersecurity, AI and analytics.
'Nothing really has been done in this space to keep up with the pace of how we identify humans,' Muoio told Technical.ly. 'We were just psyched that [Corsha was] addressing this problem we were worrying about in such an excellent way.'
Acting as a board observer for Corsha, she plans to meet with Iyer monthly, along with SineWave's Donna Dodson. The group will discuss the startup, Muoio said, but also the experience of navigating the technology sector as a woman: 'That's something that we went through, and can also help her with.'
Expanding staff and launching a lab
Because Corsha is focusing on expanding to more commercial uses, having this raise be an extension of the previous Series A made more sense to Iyer, the cofounder, who sees it as a 'stepping stone' to Series B.
'This raise is really focused on taking this now really mature product that we've proven out with some of these toughest customers in these tough environments,' she said, 'and taking it out to commercial enterprises.'
Iyer described plans to hire 10 to 15 people in sales, go to market, customer success and engineering. Corsha currently employs 27 people, who all work hybrid. The firm's second office in Atlanta will close and be moved to Warner Robins, Georgia, to be closer to the Air Force base there. There are no employees stationed at that Atlanta office, Iyer said.
Several existing employees at Corsha will be promoted to leadership roles, including a chief technology officer and a vice president of operations.
A need to hire is what spurred Iyer to go out and raise. 'The biggest telltale sign is when you have way more work than you can handle,' she said. 'We really needed to scale the team out… I think that's a good indication of sort of the early product market fit as well.'
The infusion of capital will also be used to build Corsha Labs, where staff will research different use cases for the startup's platform. It'll be key in improving the tech and understanding how it can fit into different systems, Iyer said.
She also plans to publish its findings via blog posts and articles.
'It's meant to be a very hands-on lab,' Iyer said, 'that hopefully we're adding valuable thought leadership back into the community around some of the cybersecurity concerns we're seeing.'
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