Clutch, a cybersecurity startup focused on securing non-human identities within enterprise systems, has raised $20 million in a new funding round. The round was led by SignalFire, with participation from existing investors Lightspeed Venture Partners and Merlin Ventures, who previously backed the company’s $8.5 million seed round. The startup plans to use the new funds for research and development, product expansion, and business development.
In the cybersecurity domain, identity is often viewed as the “perimeter” protecting an organization. Many cyber breaches originate through techniques like password theft, phishing, and credential stuffing. As a result, securing the identities of not just users, but also applications and machines, has become essential to safeguarding entire systems. Clutch’s platform helps secure critical data, such as API keys, service accounts, tokens, and other credentials, ensuring that enterprises can effectively protect their infrastructure.
Clutch’s platform integrates with nearly 60 widely used infrastructure services, applications, and identity providers, all essential for enterprise environments. Its services include network visibility, risk management, and lifecycle management, provided through a zero-trust security approach, which ensures that all entities, including machines and users, are treated with suspicion until verified.
The platform’s relevance has grown in response to the increasing number of machine identities within large enterprises. Research from Venafi, a competitor of Clutch, reveals that the average number of machine identities in large enterprises has increased significantly—from 320,000 in 2022 to over 1 million in 2024. This trend highlights the growing complexity of managing machine identities, making solutions like Clutch’s critical to enterprise security.
Clutch was founded in October 2023, coinciding with a major security crisis in Israel, which was attacked by Hamas, leading to a war in Gaza. CEO Ofir Har-Chen, who co-founded Clutch alongside Sagi Haas and Tal Kimhi, described the experience as both challenging and motivating. While the chaos made it difficult to find employees at first, it also sharpened the focus of those who joined the company. Despite initial struggles, Clutch managed to build its first minimum-viable product (MVP) within three months.
Har-Chen brings over 20 years of experience in cybersecurity, including roles within the Israeli government and private companies. Haas and Kimhi, also experienced in cybersecurity, previously worked at Axonius, another security firm. With their deep industry knowledge and a growing team, Clutch is positioning itself to further secure enterprise systems against increasingly sophisticated cyber threats.
