Waterloo-based cybersecurity company ISARA has announced that Shasta Ventures, a Silicon Valley venture capital firm focused on early-stage companies, is leading a Series A financing round with a $13 million ($10 million USD) investment in the company.
ISARA specializes in creating quantum-safe security solutions for today’s computing ecosystems to enable migration from classical to quantum computing. ISARA’s mission is to awareness of quantum threats, and design and implement quantum-safe solutions that will work globally.
“Shasta’s investment recognizes the fundamental role security will play in the quantum age.”
– ISARA CEO Scott Totzke
“Quantum computing requires a wholesale, generational rethinking of how we secure the digital environment,” said Shasta Ventures partner Nitin Chopra. “ISARA is the clear leader as the only company with commercial solutions that can be implemented today. Complex systems used by corporations and governments will take years to migrate to a quantum-safe state and smart organizations are already beginning the transition.”
Shasta’s investment builds on ISARA’s initial capital of $11.5 million USD from Quantum Valley Investments, founded by BlackBerry creator Mike Lazaridis, to enable ISARA to scale globally to address the looming security threat posed by quantum computers. The company said that additional investors will be announced in the coming weeks as it ramps up its capabilities through strategic initiatives with Cisco, DigiCert, Gemalto, Volkswagen AG and others.
“Shasta’s investment recognizes the fundamental role security will play in the quantum age,” said ISARA CEO Scott Totzke. “The global economy and our daily lives are built around a secure online ecosystem that will crumble in the face of a full-scale quantum computer. Ensuring that the many significant benefits of quantum computing can be realized requires a robust set of quantum-safe security and encryption practices that are practical, affordable and agile. ISARA is focused on providing solution providers, enterprises and governments with the tools they need to enter the quantum age with confidence and optimism. The enthusiastic response of investors like Shasta in our Series A offer reinforces the need for what we do.”