AWS, CrowdStrike & NVIDIA back 35 AI security startups

CrowdStrike, Amazon Web Services and NVIDIA have named 35 startups for their 2026 Cybersecurity Startup Accelerator, in a joint push around artificial intelligence-led and cloud-focused security products.

The latest cohort marks the third year of the accelerator, which runs over eight weeks and focuses on young companies in areas such as cloud security, identity protection and AI-based defence tools. The organisers received hundreds of applications from around the world.

The organisers said they selected the 35 startups based on the strength of their technology, the potential for commercial impact and the quality of founding teams. The programme is free for participants.

Startups in the 2026 group will receive structured mentorship from CrowdStrike, AWS and NVIDIA. They will also gain access to technical experts from the three companies. The programme includes guidance on go-to-market planning and access to broader partner networks.

The accelerator runs through early March and will feature workshops, technical sessions and market-focused briefings. Participants will also work with product and engineering specialists from the three sponsors.

The initiative will close with a pitch event for five selected finalists at the RSA Conference in San Francisco. A panel of industry experts will select one innovation award winner. Finalists will also be considered for potential investment from the CrowdStrike Falcon Fund.

CrowdStrike positions the accelerator as part of a wider effort around AI-led cyber defence. It has expanded its focus on startups that address threats linked with large-scale cloud adoption and the growing use of identity-based attacks.

"The Cybersecurity Startup Accelerator has become a launchpad for the next era of AI-driven security innovators," said Daniel Bernard, Chief Business Officer, CrowdStrike. "This year's cohort reflects a global movement: founders building cloud- and identity-first defenses that put security teams ahead of the speed and scale of AI-emboldened adversaries. With AWS and NVIDIA, we're creating community and growing "the crowd," giving these startups the opportunity to turn breakthrough ideas into market-shaping technologies, and push the industry forward."

AWS, which has a large base of cloud infrastructure customers, is using the programme to deepen links with specialist security vendors that run on its platform. Many of the startups in the cohort design products for cloud-native environments.

"Startups continue to push the boundaries of what's possible in AI-driven security," said Chris Grusz, Managing Director, Technology Partnerships, AWS. "The third year of the Cybersecurity Startup Accelerator once again brings together the power and expertise of AWS, CrowdStrike, and NVIDIA to help these innovators accelerate development, strengthen their platforms, and scale their transformative solutions faster."

NVIDIA is contributing its Inception startup programme and AI expertise. The chip designer has increased its focus on so-called agentic AI, which uses autonomous or semi-autonomous agents to handle complex tasks such as threat detection.

"AI is reshaping cybersecurity at every level, demanding new approaches that can operate at cloud scale and defender speed," said Bartley Richardson, Senior Director of Agentic AI and Cybersecurity Engineering, NVIDIA. "Through the accelerator, NVIDIA, AWS, and CrowdStrike are empowering startups with the compute, frameworks and guidance they need to advance agentic AI and build the next wave of intelligent, resilient security technologies."

Global cohort

The 2026 group includes companies from North America, Europe and other regions. The organisers did not disclose which firms are operating in stealth mode but listed 30 public participants.

The named startups are Above Security, Aira Security, Artemis, Astelia, Averlon, Capsule Security, Dash Security, Drift Security and Dux Security. They also include Evoke Security, Fabrix, Fortyx Security, Geordie AI, Haleum AI, Hush Security and Huskeys.

Other cohort members are Jazz Security, Mars Security, Mate Security, NANO Corp, Nebari, Nimble Security, Opti, Pluto Security, QIZ Security and Raven. The list also features Sevii, Simbian AI, SurePath AI, Synqly, Tika Security, VisionHeight, Vivid Security and Zepo Intelligence.

The mix spans early-stage firms focused on areas such as AI-driven detection, cloud workload protection, identity security and secure data handling. Some of the companies build on top of hyperscale cloud platforms, while others focus on integration with existing security stacks.

Industry context

The accelerator reflects concern in the security industry about attackers' use of AI tools and automated techniques. Vendors and investors have increased their attention on technology that can operate at what they describe as "defender speed" across complex cloud estates.

Startups in the programme gain access to cloud compute resources from AWS and AI frameworks and hardware support from NVIDIA. CrowdStrike shares insights from its threat intelligence and incident response work.

The organisers expect the 2026 cohort to ship new integrations and proofs of concept during and after the eight-week course. The finalists that present at RSA will showcase their products in front of security buyers, investors and potential partners.

The selection signals continued interest from large platform providers in early-stage security firms, as they seek both product innovation and ecosystem growth. CrowdStrike, AWS and NVIDIA plan to run future cycles of the accelerator as they expand their engagement with emerging cyber startups.