Security startup Chainguard raises $356M at $3.5B valuation as demand for secure software supply chains surges

Open source has supercharged modern software development. Roughly 90% of production code today is pulled from public repositories, turning what once took weeks into something developers now ship in hours. But there’s a catch—one that teams feel every day. That speed comes with security tradeoffs, forcing some of the smartest engineers in the room to spend their time patching vulnerabilities instead of building the next big thing.

That’s exactly the problem Chainguard is built to solve.

Today, the four-year-old security startup announced a $356 million Series D round, pushing its valuation to $3.5 billion. Kleiner Perkins and IVP led the round, with Salesforce Ventures, Datadog Ventures, and all existing backers participating. The raise brings Chainguard’s total funding to $612 million.

The latest capital infusion will go toward product development, go-to-market expansion, and growing its presence in regions like EMEA and APAC, where demand for infrastructure security continues to rise.

Chainguard’s $3.5B Valuation: Solving Open Source Security at Scale

Founded in 2021 by Matthew Moore, Ville Aikas, Kim Lewandowski, and Dan Lorenc, Chainguard has grown fast by tackling a big pain point: keeping modern software systems secure from the start rather than patching problems later. The company offers a range of tools that help organizations lock down their software supply chains—an area that’s drawn serious attention in recent years following high-profile breaches and increased scrutiny on software integrity.

CEO Dan Lorenc summed it up plainly: “Chainguard was founded on a simple yet powerful belief that security and innovation should go hand in hand.” He added that the company is aiming to change how software is built and secured “from the ground up.”

And it’s not just talk. Chainguard grew its annual recurring revenue sevenfold to $40 million in fiscal year 2025 and expects to cross $100 million next year. Customers include companies like Canva, GitLab, Anduril, Hewlett-Packard Enterprise, and Snap.

The company’s core offering, Chainguard Containers, has now surpassed 150 customers. It recently introduced new products, including Chainguard VMs—minimal, vulnerability-free virtual machine images—and Chainguard Libraries, a collection of secure Java libraries built entirely from source.

Big customers are already seeing results. “Chainguard’s secure container images allow us to move fast while maintaining compliance with the most rigorous cybersecurity standards,” said Dylan Shepard, Senior Lead Platform Engineer at Booz Allen. Snap’s Security Engineering Manager, Shrikant Pandhare, echoed the value of Chainguard’s tools, noting they’ve helped “drive down vulnerabilities” and provided “a solid technology foundation.”

Even with some pullback in tech funding, cybersecurity—especially companies that offer proactive solutions—is still attracting serious checks. Last month, AI-powered cybersecurity firm ReliaQuest raised more than $500 million at a $3.4 billion valuation, Reuters reported.

Chainguard, it seems, is riding the same wave—proving that strong traction, big-name clients, and a sharp focus on security fundamentals are still enough to keep investors leaning in.