ZeroWall has raised $2.0M in total across 1 funding round.
ZeroWall's investors include Founders' Co-op, F Prime Capital, Insight Partners, Redpoint Ventures, Gary Benitt.
ZeroWall is a Portland, Oregon-based startup founded in 2020 that provides an AI-driven platform delivering actionable, ongoing security insights to organizations, initially targeting small and medium-sized tech or tech-enabled businesses.[2][3][4] It rethinks enterprise security with a holistic approach informed by founder Joan Pepin's experience as a cybersecurity leader at Auth0, Nike, and Sumo Logic, addressing the challenges CISOs face in balancing security with business needs.[4] The company raised $2 million in seed funding in 2020 from investors including Susa, Founders’ Co-op, and Costanoa, and operates as a remote-first team.[4]
Note: Search results reveal conflicting descriptions, with zerowall.com describing a separate "rules-based corporate governance and capital lifecycle platform," but authoritative sources like GeekWire, Preqin, and Orpheus consistently position ZeroWall as an AI security company.[1][2][3][4] This analysis prioritizes the security-focused profile as the primary match for the query's "technology company" context.
ZeroWall was launched in 2020 by Joan Pepin, a veteran cybersecurity executive who served as Chief Security Officer at Auth0 (an identity authentication startup), Vice President of Operations at Auth0, Business Information Security Officer at Nike, and at Sumo Logic.[4] Pepin left Auth0 in September 2020 to start the company after recognizing the need for a "different, holistic approach to information security," drawing from her firsthand experience with enterprise security challenges at high-growth tech firms.[4] Early traction came via a $2M seed round led by Susa Ventures, with participation from Founders’ Co-op (who knew Pepin through Auth0), Costanoa, Voyager Capital, Portland Seed Fund, Unity Now, and angels including Auth0 CEO Eugenio Pace as an advisor.[4] At launch, Pepin was the sole employee, planning hires in a remote-first model based in Portland, Oregon.[4]
ZeroWall rides the wave of AI-powered cybersecurity, addressing explosive demand for automated threat detection amid rising ransomware, supply chain attacks, and remote work vulnerabilities post-2020.[4] Its timing aligns with small/medium enterprises (SMEs) scaling digitally without enterprise-grade security budgets, a market gap highlighted by investors like Founders’ Co-op who noted portfolio companies' struggles.[4] Favorable forces include regulatory pressures (e.g., GDPR, SEC rules) and AI advancements enabling proactive insights over reactive tools. By targeting tech SMEs, ZeroWall influences the ecosystem by democratizing advanced security, potentially reducing breach costs (averaging millions per incident) and fostering safer innovation in underserved segments.[2][3][4]
ZeroWall is poised to expand beyond SMEs into larger enterprises as AI security matures, leveraging Pepin's expertise and investor network for product evolution and hires.[4] Trends like zero-trust architectures, AI threat hunting, and integrated compliance tools will shape its path, with potential for partnerships in cloud ecosystems (e.g., AWS, Azure). Its influence may grow by setting standards for accessible, holistic security, much like Auth0 did for identity—empowering entrepreneurs to build securely from day one, echoing its origins in rethinking inefficient systems.[4]
ZeroWall has raised $2.0M across 1 funding round. Most recently, it raised $2.0M Seed in December 2020.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dec 1, 2020 | $2.0M Seed | Founders' Co-op, F Prime Capital, Insight Partners, Redpoint Ventures, Gary Benitt |
