Florida’s TENEX.AI Raises $250 Million, Crosses Unicorn Threshold in AI Cybersecurity Push

By Zack Huhn | Enterprise Technology Association | March 31, 2026

Sarasota-based TENEX.AI has closed a $250 million funding round at a valuation exceeding $1 billion, cementing its position as one of the fastest-growing AI cybersecurity companies in the country — and a flagship example of Florida’s rapidly maturing technology ecosystem.

The round was led by Crosspoint Capital Partners, with participation from Shield Capital and DeepWork Capital. TENEX has previously raised from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), which led its $27 million Series A in September 2025. Additional strategic investors include the Florida Opportunity Fund, DTCP, and Plug and Play Tech Center.

What TENEX Does

TENEX operates an AI-native Managed Detection and Response (MDR) platform — a security operations center powered by agentic AI that autonomously triages alerts, investigates threats, and coordinates responses, with human experts providing oversight on critical decisions. The company has built deep integrations with major cloud security ecosystems from Google, Microsoft, and Amazon, serving as a delivery and optimization layer that helps enterprises get more out of their existing security infrastructure.

The company’s leadership brings direct pedigree from the platforms it now partners with. CEO Eric Foster previously co-founded Cyderes, one of Google’s largest MDR partners. CTO Venkata Koppaka was a founding engineer of Chronicle, the technology that became Google Security Operations. Their team includes veterans from Google Security, Microsoft Security, and RiskIQ.

Growth Trajectory

TENEX’s growth has been aggressive by any measure. The company surpassed $10 million in revenue within its first six months on the market and exceeded $18 million by the end of its third quarter of operations. It has secured multiple Fortune 500 and Global 2000 customers and deployed in high-threat enterprise environments across sectors including financial services, healthcare, retail, and critical infrastructure.

The new funding will support expansion of TENEX’s agentic AI platform, continued U.S. growth, and a push into the EMEA market, where the company plans to establish an international headquarters in 2026.

Why This Matters for the AI Ecosystem

TENEX’s raise reflects a broader surge of investment into AI-driven cybersecurity. As organizations adopt AI across operations, the attack surface is expanding — and so is the sophistication of threats. The same week as TENEX’s announcement, OpenAI completed its acquisition of security testing firm Promptfoo, and both OpenAI and Anthropic unveiled AI agents designed to help security teams identify and patch vulnerabilities at scale.

For the AI workforce development community, this trend carries an important signal: cybersecurity is becoming inseparable from AI fluency. The next generation of security professionals will need to understand AI systems not just as tools to deploy, but as environments to defend. Organizations like ETA see this convergence as a core part of the workforce readiness challenge — preparing communities and industries for a future where AI competency is a prerequisite for economic security.

The Florida Connection

TENEX’s decision to headquarter in Sarasota aligns with the growing CyberBay initiative across the Tampa Bay region, which is positioning the area as a national hub for cybersecurity and AI innovation. The company has announced plans to hire up to 100 AI and cybersecurity professionals in Sarasota over the coming years, with additional growth in Kansas City and San Jose.

Florida’s emergence as a magnet for AI and cybersecurity companies reinforces the case that technology ecosystem development doesn’t have to be concentrated on the coasts. With the right combination of talent pipelines, investment infrastructure, and community activation, regions across the country can compete for — and win — the companies that are defining the AI era.

The Enterprise Technology Association (ETA) is a national organization focused on AI education, enablement, and ecosystem building. Learn more at joineta.org.