Cybersecurity funding surged to $3.03 billion in the third quarter of 2025, a 51% increase year-on-year. This influx of capital is primarily driven by intense investor appetite for AI-driven and quantum-safe security platforms, according to new research from Omdia, presented by Chief Analyst Matthew Ball.
Total cybersecurity funding this year stands at $9.72 billion. However, there was a 22% quarter-over-quarter dip from 2Q, reflecting persistent caution amid broader market uncertainty, according to Ball.
The strong growth in the third quarter was largely dominated by early investments and a mega deal:
Early-stage growth: Early-stage investment activity rose 13%, led by Quantinuum’s $600 million Series B round, the largest of the quarter.
Series C booms: Series C funding more than doubled to $559mn, led by Ontic‘ $230mn round. In contrast, later-stage rounds (Series D–H) declined 79% quarter-over-quarter.
Focus on AI: Companies like Ontic, Vanta ($150mn), and Armis ($100mn) led late-stage AI funding. New players like Dropzone AI and Prophet Security are focusing on the emerging trend of AI agents and autonomous SOCs (Security Operations Centers).
While the US and Israel dominated funding, increased activity in Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands, and the UK signaled growing ecosystem momentum across Europe.
Among pre-IPO vendors, 64 have raised over $300mn, with a median founding year of 2013. Collectively, they’ve secured $40.34bn, 82% since 2022. The top 20 account for half of that total. Exit momentum among this cohort picked up in the quarter. Netskope‘s IPO raised $900mn, following $1.4bn in pre-IPO financing. Wiz‘s $32bn acquisition by Google Cloud Security and Cybereason‘s deal with LevelBlue will add to the wave. The IPO pipeline remains active, with Snyk, Cato Networks, and Abnormal AI among the top candidates.
