Israeli cloud security company Upwind Security, cofounded by serial entrepreneur Amiram Shachar is acquiring Israeli AI cybersecurity startup Aegis, which until now has been operating in stealth. Aegis was founded by two engineers - Omri Limor and Saar Ankonina - who until recently were employees at cybersecurity companies Centra and Sweet Security.
Aegis was founded at the start of 2026, and as far as is known has just raised several million dollars, and during a recent financing round that it undertook received an acquisition offer from Upwind, which market sources estimate was for about $30 million in shares.
About a month ago, the two entrepreneurs told their social media followers that they were beginning work at Upwind and today, the company officially announced the acquisition, without disclosing terms of the deal.
Aegis, which operates in a similar space to Onyx and Noma, hasd developed technology that identifies the characteristics of attacks involving AI agents - threats that are extremely difficult to detect using the tools currently available to cybersecurity managers. During its operations, the company initiated a strategic partnership with Upwind. After several months of collaboration and just nine months after Aegis was founded, Shachar decided to acquire the company and integrate its team and technology into the Upwind platform. Reportedly, Aegis had no customers or revenue at the time of the deal.
Leading the new AI lab's operations
Aegis’s founders Limor and Ankonina are graduates of IDF Unit 8200, who began their shared journey in the unit in cyberattack roles. After completing their service, the two worked at startups Sweet and Centra, before founding Aegis to address emerging security challenges surrounding AI infrastructure, specifically the security of AI agents.
Following the acquisition, the two entrepreneurs will lead Upwind’s AI lab, which will be named Upwind AI Security Labs. The new lab will combine Aegis’s technology and research with the acquiring company’s existing cloud security capabilities. Work will focus on, among other things, identifying new attack techniques, scanning for and detecting threats, and developing security capabilities for AI environments. The lab currently employs 12 developers and researchers from both companies and the team will grow to 25 within three months, and potentially even larger depending on future acquisitions.
Shachar plans to ramp up M&A activity centered on AI products. "Developments in the AI field are rapidly transforming the cybersecurity landscape and the capabilities available to attackers," Shahar stated.
In recent months, cybersecurity companies have accelerated development efforts focused on AI-agent-based attacks. Notable moves include Shlomo Kramer’s Cato Networks acquiring Aim Security, Palo Alto Networks acquiring the US-based Protect AI, and Cyera acquiring Oasis Security. Google’s acquisition of Wiz was also driven by AI considerations, as Wiz sought to integrate with the Gemini model to deepen its defensive capabilities against AI-based attacks.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on September 23, 2026.
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