22 Oct 2026, Thu

Amsterdam-based industrial cybersecurity startup Indurex has successfully closed a €7 million (approximately $7.84 million) funding round, marking a significant milestone for the firm as it looks to scale its operations and address the growing security challenges facing critical infrastructure. The investment round was led by Contrarian Ventures, with notable participation from Axeleo Capital and Curiosity, signaling strong investor confidence in the company’s specialized approach to safeguarding cyber-physical systems.

The fresh capital injection is earmarked for an ambitious expansion strategy. Indurex intends to accelerate its research and development efforts, refine its core technology, and significantly broaden its commercial footprint. Initially, the company will focus on solidifying its presence across Europe and the Middle East, with plans to eventually expand its reach into the United States and Asia-Pacific markets as demand for robust industrial security continues to climb globally.

Bridging the Gap in OT Security

At the heart of the company’s value proposition is its flagship platform, SafeGuard AI. In an era where industrial operations are increasingly digitized, traditional cybersecurity tools often fall short. Most conventional Operational Technology (OT) security solutions prioritize the monitoring of network-connected assets and traffic patterns—essentially treating industrial systems like standard IT environments. However, Indurex argues that this network-centric focus overlooks the nuances of the physical processes themselves.

Indurex addresses this by developing sophisticated security software tailored specifically for cyber-physical systems. The SafeGuard AI platform functions by ingesting and analyzing a comprehensive array of data points, including information from distributed control systems (DCS), safety instrumented systems (SIS), process historians, alarm management systems, and existing IT security tools. By synthesizing this diverse data, the platform identifies anomalies, unauthorized changes to engineering configurations, modifications to protection settings, and deviations in safety functions—all of which could indicate a potential security breach or a looming operational hazard that requires immediate operator attention.

The core philosophy driving the platform is the integration of engineering, process, safety, and cybersecurity data. By consolidating these traditionally siloed streams of information, Indurex enables operators to view security alerts not just as abstract digital warnings, but in the context of the physical systems they govern. This contextual awareness is critical for industrial environments where a minor configuration change could have catastrophic physical consequences, such as equipment failure or safety risks to personnel.

A Proven Foundation for Industrial Security

Indurex emerged from stealth in January 2026, bringing with it a deep well of industry expertise. The company was founded by Jalal Bouhdada, who serves as CEO, and Maarten Oosterink, who serves as COO. Their leadership brings a pedigree of success in the industrial security sector; notably, Bouhdada was the founder of Applied Risk, a prominent industrial cybersecurity firm that was acquired by the assurance and risk management giant DNV in 2021. This background provides Indurex with a clear understanding of the complex risk management challenges faced by global industrial players.

The company has already begun building an impressive client roster, counting energy and manufacturing operators among its early adopters. These customers range from mid-sized companies to large multinational enterprises, reflecting the scalability of the SafeGuard AI platform. Beyond the traditional energy and manufacturing sectors, Indurex is actively targeting critical utility providers and data center operators—two sectors currently under intense pressure to fortify their digital perimeters against increasingly sophisticated state-sponsored and criminal threats.

The Evolving Threat Landscape

The need for Indurex’s specialized approach is underscored by a persistent and evolving threat landscape. The convergence of IT and OT has expanded the attack surface for critical infrastructure, making industrial environments primary targets for malicious actors. Recent incidents serve as a stark reminder of these vulnerabilities. For instance, reports of access system flaws that allowed hackers to unlock doors at major European firms demonstrate how digital security gaps can have immediate, tangible impacts on physical facility security.

Furthermore, the involvement of advanced persistent threat (APT) groups, such as the Russian-linked Sandworm, in cyberattacks against the Polish power grid underscores the reality that industrial infrastructure is now a front line in geopolitical cyber warfare. As these threats grow more frequent and complex, the industry is seeing a corresponding surge in investment. The recent $150 million Series F funding round for Claroty, another major player in the industrial cybersecurity space, serves as a testament to the massive market interest in technologies that can secure the backbone of the modern economy.

For Indurex, the task ahead is to prove that its holistic, physics-aware approach to security can provide a more effective defense than the legacy tools currently in place. By focusing on the "process" rather than just the "network," the firm aims to provide operators with the intelligence necessary to defend their environments before a digital anomaly manifests as a physical disaster.

As the company transitions from its stealth phase into a period of rapid commercial scaling, the industry will be watching to see how its integration of engineering data and AI-driven monitoring holds up against the escalating demands of critical infrastructure. With the backing of Contrarian Ventures, Axeleo Capital, and Curiosity, Indurex is positioning itself not just as another cybersecurity vendor, but as a critical partner for industrial operators who can no longer afford to view their cybersecurity and physical operations as separate domains. The €7 million infusion is, in many ways, just the beginning of the firm’s attempt to redefine how the world protects the physical systems that keep modern society running.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *