Mandia moves from Strategic Partner to GP to
fund and incubate the next generation of cybersecurity
innovation
SAN FRANCISCO, June 26, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ballistic
Ventures, the venture capital firm dedicated exclusively to funding
and incubating entrepreneurs and innovations in cybersecurity, is
pleased to announce that co-founder Kevin
Mandia is now General Partner.
Mandia is one of the world's most recognized experts in
cybersecurity, known for his relentless efforts to fight cyber
threats for more than 30 years. In 2004, he founded renowned
cybersecurity firm Mandiant, serving as CEO from 2004 to 2013, when
Mandiant Corporation was acquired by FireEye. Mandia took the helm
as CEO of FireEye in 2016, guiding the company through a
divestiture and corporate name change to Mandiant, Inc. in 2021,
and through a successful acquisition by Google in 2022. Mandia
recently transitioned to an advisory role within Google Cloud, and
he continues to sit on the Google Public Sector board.
In 2023, Mandia was appointed by President Biden to serve as a
member of the National Security Telecommunications Advisory
Committee (NSTAC). He is also a member of the Cybersecurity and
Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) Cybersecurity Advisory
Committee. Previously, he held senior positions in the security
consulting divisions of Sytex, acquired by Lockheed Martin, and
Foundstone, acquired by McAfee. He also served in the United States Air Force as a computer
security officer at the Pentagon, and later as a special agent in
the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.
"I am very excited to dedicate more of my energy to Ballistic
Ventures, and I especially look forward to working with the
entrepreneurs who are shaping the future of cybersecurity," said
Mandia.
Ballistic Ventures was co-founded in 2021 by Mandia and General
Partners Barmak Meftah, Ted Schlein,
Jake Seid and Roger Thornton. While CEO of Mandiant (now part
of Google Cloud), Mandia jointly served as Co-founder and Strategic
Partner at Ballistic, leading the firm's investment in SpecterOps,
the Attack Path Management company, where he is an Observer to the
company's Board of Directors. Mandia also served as the second
investing partner for five of the VC firm's 18 investments to date,
and is a Board Observer to portfolio company Alethea, the
disinformation detection and mitigation company.
"We're excited to have Kevin as a General Partner at Ballistic,"
said Schlein. "Kevin's expertise in the cybersecurity industry is
unparalleled, and his knowledge of the market and customer set is
unmatched."
As General Partner, Mandia will draw from his extensive
knowledge of the threat landscape and expertise as a successful
founder and CEO to expand his investments within the firm and
continue to mentor entrepreneurs and scale companies across the
Ballistic portfolio.
Mandia's move to General Partner comes on the heels of Ballistic
Ventures announcing the close of its $360
million oversubscribed second fund. The firm is
actively looking to deploy the new capital in novel innovations led
by passionate cybersecurity entrepreneurs.
About Ballistic Ventures
Ballistic Ventures is a
venture capital firm solely dedicated to early-stage cybersecurity
and cyber-related companies. The partners have spent their entire
careers defending against every cyber threat conceivable. Members
of the firm have founded, operated, and funded over 100 successful
cybersecurity firms – including Abnormal Security, AlienVault,
ArcSight, Fortify, Mandiant, and Shape Security – led over 10,000
security professionals globally, and have 40+ years of experience
in venture capital. The Ballistic portfolio includes Aembit,
Alethea, ArmorCode, AuthMind, Codezero, Concentric AI, Mimic, Nudge
Security, Oligo, Pangea, Perygee, Reach Security, SpecterOps, Talon
(PANW), Veza and WitnessAI. Our experience provides entrepreneurs
impactful support from people focused on the same mission. Our
networks and relationships open doors for our founders. Learn more
at ballisticventures.com.
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SOURCE Ballistic Ventures