Skip to main content

AI Spera

Category: AI in Cybersecurity

An AI-powered Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) and Attack Surface Management (ASM) platform that tracks and analyzes global IP addresses and domains to identify cyber threats from an attacker's perspective. AI Spera was founded in 2017. The company is led by Byungtak Kang. Based in Seoul, South Korea. Team size: 50-100. Total funding raised: $17.5M. Latest round: Series B ($8.5-9M, Nov 2024 led by KB Investment, JB Investment, Kyobo Life Insurance, Smilegate Investment). Key investors include ["KB Investment","JB Investment","Kyobo Life","Smilegate Investment","NHN","Netmarble","Kim Taek-jin"].

Founded
2017
Headquarters
Seoul, South Korea
Team size
50-100
Total funding
$17.5M

Value proposition

Provides preemptive defense by automating the discovery of exposed digital assets and vulnerabilities using a massive 44PB dataset of global threat intelligence, reducing the window of opportunity for hackers.

Products and solutions

["Criminal IP (CTI Search Engine)","Criminal IP ASM (Enterprise Attack Surface Management)","Criminal IP FDS (Fraud Detection System)","Criminal IP Enterprise (Custom Threat Intelligence Feed)","Criminal IP WordPress Security Plugin","Criminal IP Malicious Link Detector (Microsoft Outlook Add-in)","Criminal IP ASM v2.0 / TI v2.0 (AI-powered, announced for 2026)"]

Unique value

Maintains one of the world's largest cyber threat databases (44PB) and utilizes an 'attacker-view' methodology to index every accessible IP on the internet in real-time, rather than relying on reactive internal logs.

Target customer

Enterprise security teams (CISO/SOC), government and law enforcement agencies, financial institutions, and individual security researchers.

Industries served

["Financial Services & Fintech","Government & Public Sector","Gaming & Metaverse","E-commerce","Information Technology & Managed Security (MSSP)"]

Technology advantage

Combines proprietary AI-based scoring logic for malicious domain classification with high-speed web crawling to detect sophisticated evasion tactics like VPNs, proxies, and fraudulent APIs.

How they differentiate

Criminal IP differentiates itself through AI-driven maliciousness scoring and visualization, moving beyond the raw banner data provided by Shodan. It combines Attack Surface Management (ASM) with Fraud Detection (FDS) in a single interface, offering actionable intelligence rather than just technical scan results.

Main competitors

["Shodan","Censys","Zoomeye","S2W","Palo Alto Networks (Cortex Xpanse)"]

Key partnerships

["Global Security Leaders: Tenable, VirusTotal, Cisco, Splunk, Anomali, Palo Alto Networks (Cortex XSOAR)","SIEM/SOAR Integrations: IBM QRadar SIEM & SOAR, Securonix ThreatQ","Cloud Infrastructure: AWS Marketplace, Azure Marketplace, Snowflake Marketplace","Microsoft Marketplace: Criminal IP Malicious Link Detector for Outlook","Regional Distributors: DotForce (Europe), Checksum (Middle East)","Enterprise Clients: Nexon, Metabora, various South Korean government agencies"]

Notable customers

["Nexon","Metabora","Korea Internet & Security Agency (KISA)","South Korean Government Agencies"]

Major milestones

["Founded in October 2017 by cybersecurity experts from Korea University.","Launched flagship CTI search engine 'Criminal IP' globally in 2022.","Secured 8.0 billion KRW Series A in April 2022.","Awarded a US patent for 'Hacking Neutralization Technology' in 2023.","Closed 12.0 billion KRW Series B round in January 2024 to fuel global expansion.","Launched Criminal IP Malicious Link Detector on Microsoft Marketplace (Jan 2025).","Selected for Korea's DIPS 1000+ Ultra-Gap Startup Project (May 2025).","Revenue doubled YoY in 2025 vs 2024.","Integrated with Palo Alto Networks Cortex XSOAR (Dec 2025).","Integrated with IBM QRadar SIEM & SOAR (Feb 2026).","Announced AI-powered Criminal IP v2.0 upgrade for 2026.","Participated in RSAC 2026 with dedicated booth.","Partnered with Securonix ThreatQ (May 2026)."]

Growth metrics

Cumulative investment of 23B KRW (~$17.5M); revenue doubled YoY in 2025; services utilized in over 150 countries; manages a 44PB threat intelligence database; integrated with 40+ global security vendors.

Market positioning

Leading Asian Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) provider expanding into the global enterprise ASM market.

Geographic focus

Headquartered in South Korea (APAC leader) with active expansion in North America, Europe, and the Middle East through global distribution partnerships.

Patents and IP

Holds multiple domestic and international patents, including 'AI-based Malicious Domain Classification' and a recent US patent for 'Hacking Neutralization Technology' focused on identifying masked IP origins.

About Byungtak Kang

Byungtak Kang is the CEO and co-founder of AI Spera. He is a recognized expert in Cyber Threat Intelligence (CTI) and OSINT-based security, with a Ph.D. in Information Security from Korea University. His career includes serving as a professor at Korea University's Graduate School of Information Security and holding senior leadership roles in security infrastructure at major gaming companies, including Nexon Korea, Nexon America, and Neople (developer of Dungeon & Fighter).

Official website: