imper.ai, a New York City, based cybersecurity startup, has officially launched with $28 million in funding, signaling a major step forward in the fight against AI-driven impersonation attacks. The funding round was led by Redpoint Ventures and Battery Ventures, with participation from Maple VC, Vessy VC, and Cerca Partners. With its launch, the company aims to help enterprises stay ahead of increasingly sophisticated threats such as deepfake videos, voice clones, and social engineering techniques that are now emerging across corporate communication systems.

Built to Intercept Identity Threats From the Start

AI-based impersonation has evolved rapidly, and imper.ai focuses on stopping these attacks at the exact moment they begin. Instead of analyzing the content of a call, message, or video, the company’s platform studies the digital fingerprints surrounding a communication.

This includes device telemetry, network diagnostics, behavior patterns, and organization-specific signals that can reveal when something is off, even if the impersonator’s audio or video seems perfectly real. By prioritizing the detection of hidden indicators rather than visible content, the platform aims to stop attackers before they can mislead employees or gain access to internal systems.

This preventative design reflects the company’s mission: ensuring that every interaction within a workplace begins with a trusted identity.

Invisible Protection That Fits Into Everyday Workflows

An​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ important feature of imper.ai is its agentless architecture that enables the system to be very quiet and fully automatic in its operation without the necessity of the employees installing any software or manually activating the tools. With this flawless layout, companies are free to carry on their usual work while making their identity protection more ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌robust.

The​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ platform is a direct integration with the most common communication and productivity tools like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Slack, WhatsApp, and Google Workspace. Besides, it is compatible with applicant-tracking systems and IT helpdesk environments, thereby safeguarding the places where impersonation attacks frequently ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌originate.

The emphasis is on creating a layer of security that is always active yet never intrusive, a system that employees do not need to think about, but one that constantly watches for potential threats.

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A Leadership Team Rooted in Cyber Intelligence

imper.ai was founded by three cybersecurity experts:

• Noam Awadish, CEO
• Anatoly Blighovsky, CPO
• Rom Dudkiewicz, CTO

Each founder has a strong background in cyber intelligence, having served in highly specialized cybersecurity roles and worked extensively in vulnerability research, cyber defense, and high-level operational security. Their combined experience shaped the philosophy behind imper.ai: to prevent identity threats not by reacting to content, but by understanding the digital behaviors and technical patterns surrounding every interaction.

Their leadership brings together years of training in detecting subtle irregularities, skills that are now essential as AI-generated impersonation becomes more convincing and more accessible.

A Rising Threat That Demands a New Type of Defense

The timing of imper.ai’s launch reflects a growing recognition that identity, rather than infrastructure, has become the primary entry point for attackers. With generative AI tools now capable of mimicking voices, replicating faces, and crafting convincing messages, impersonation has moved far beyond traditional phishing.

Businesses are facing attempts where attackers pose as colleagues, executives, customers, or vendors, often using AI to craft interactions that are difficult to spot. imper.ai’s platform aims to give companies a reliable way to confirm who is on the other end, before a request is processed, a payment is approved, or sensitive data is shared.

Expanding Into Industries Most at Risk

Before its official public launch, imper.ai had already begun rolling out its platform to organizations operating in finance, healthcare, and technology. These sectors manage sensitive transactions and data, making them frequent targets for impersonation attempts.

The newly secured $28 million will be used to expand the team, enhance the platform’s capabilities, and support a broader deployment across enterprises looking to strengthen their defenses against identity-based threats.

Strengthening Digital Trust for the Future

Given​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ that offices are still heavily dependent on virtual communication and remote collaboration, the necessity for precise identity verification cannot be emphasized enough. Artificial intelligence-based impersonation is to the core of digital trust what a spear is to a shield, and imper.ai is committed to bringing back that trust by being almost invisible and thus very efficient in real-time ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌detection.

By focusing on early intervention, seamless integration, and continuous monitoring, the company hopes to become a core layer of security for organizations navigating an increasingly AI-powered world.

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