Josh Ray is the founder and CEO of Blackwire Labs, bringing over 24 years of expertise in combating superior cyber threats throughout industrial, non-public, public, and navy sectors. As a U.S. Navy veteran and cybersecurity govt, Ray has constantly constructed and led high-performing groups to guard essential networks and organizations. His profession consists of key roles at Accenture Safety, Verisign, Raytheon, and the Workplace of Naval Intelligence, the place he drove innovation and constructed capabilities to defend a number of the world’s largest organizations towards a myriad of superior cyber adversaries.
Josh’s mix of technical experience and enterprise acumen has been instrumental in driving development and innovation within the cybersecurity {industry}. As CEO of Blackwire Labs, Ray leads the corporate’s mission to construct trusted and professional AI cybersecurity options, leveraging his in depth expertise to navigate the advanced intersection of expertise, safety, and enterprise.
Are you able to share what impressed you to start out Blackwire Labs? What particular challenges in cybersecurity had been you hoping to handle with this enterprise?
The three of us – myself, Chris Clark CTO, and Andrew Maloney CCO – got here collectively as a result of we noticed organizations combating the identical problem: they want AI to execute towards enterprise goals and defend towards refined threats. Nonetheless, the catch is they can not belief or implement present options successfully. Collectively we have now constructed safety merchandise and capabilities for a number of the world’s largest enterprises, we noticed firsthand how smaller organizations face the identical superior threats however lack entry to the experience they want. We saved desirous about all of the organizations that could not afford giant safety groups however nonetheless wanted safety. We actually need to assist organizations of all sizes however we actually need to construct one thing significant that makes trusted expert-level cybersecurity capabilities accessible, not simply the elite few.
Your profession spans the navy, public, and personal sectors in cybersecurity. How did every of those experiences affect your imaginative and prescient for Blackwire?
Now we have a accountability to serve and defend these organizations that kind the spine of our society. Every sector actually has taught me one thing important about what we actually must construct belief and improve cyber resilience. On the Workplace of Naval Intelligence and supporting JTF-GNO, I discovered firsthand the criticality of getting the appropriate set of experience on the proper time, particularly if you’re defending networks that defend our warfighters and nationwide safety.
At Raytheon and later at iDefense, I noticed how the non-public sector was grappling with more and more refined threats, most of the similar sorts that I noticed throughout my time within the DoD. What grew to become clear was that having siloed deep experience wasn’t sufficient – you wanted to have the ability to scale that data successfully throughout a corporation. This actually hit house after I was main Accenture’s World Cyber Protection Apply, the place we had been defending a number of the world’s most focused networks and the explosion of third get together threat and provide chain assaults.
However here is what bothers me: Whereas the biggest organizations may afford to construct strong safety operations, numerous others had been left susceptible and the humorous factor is that they sit within the provide chain of these giant organizations. I noticed small companies, healthcare suppliers, and state businesses combating the identical superior threats however with out entry to the experience they wanted. That is actually what drove us to start out Blackwire Labs. We wished to take every thing we might discovered about constructing capabilities and defending organizations on the highest ranges and make it accessible to organizations that want it most. By combining trusted AI with human experience, we will help bridge that hole. It isn’t nearly constructing one other safety device – it is about delivering at scale the sort of expert-level cybersecurity capabilities that I’ve seen make the distinction between a resilient safety posture and a devastating breach.
Blackwire Labs combines expert-vetted AI insights with blockchain integrity by TrustWire. Might you stroll us by how this fusion enhances the reliability of your cybersecurity insights?
We took a practical and revolutionary strategy. We have constructed a series of belief that begins with our Cybersecurity Group of Excellence (CCOE) – seasoned professionals who collaborate with us to validate and improve our data base. We use a rigorous three-tier supply analysis framework grounded in intelligence analytical tradecraft. However based mostly on Chris’s expertise within the crypto area we’re capable of take it to the following degree. That is the place TrustWire is available in – our blockchain-based system that creates an immutable, cryptographically verifiable file of all our sources and AI outputs. Utilizing zero-knowledge proofs, we are able to show the integrity of our insights whereas defending delicate knowledge. Consider it as combining the most effective of human experience with cryptographic certainty. One other essential element of this strategy is our Safety Registry, which captures point-in-time snapshots of all cybersecurity analyses, together with insights, sources, the person desires to avoid wasting. Consider it like a system of file that gives a everlasting, shareable file of your safety decision-making course of – one thing important for explaining to your boss why you probably did one thing in relation to audits, compliance opinions, and the incident response course of.
Lexi, Blackwire’s AI, provides predictive prompting and customised steering. How does this characteristic set assist safety groups anticipate threats extra successfully?
Like most issues in life, understanding “what” the appropriate query is and “how” to ask it’s key. Our predictive prompting is not nearly suggesting subsequent steps – it is about enhancing human experience. The system understands your position, your group’s context, and your safety goals to information you towards simpler evaluation throughout a strategic, operational or tactical “select your individual journey”, as Andrew calls it, set of prompts. It lets you get extra detailed insights quicker by having the ability to account for a number of factors of view that can differ relying on the organizational position (Assume CISO/CTO- Strategic, incident responder/threat supervisor Operational, safety engineer/SOC analyst- Tactical). It’s like having a seasoned safety professional that may put on a number of hats, wanting over your shoulder, anticipating what you’ll want to think about subsequent. However with out the black field selections or sources that may change or result in lifeless hyperlinks.
Blackwire is described as being “safe by design.” Are you able to elaborate on the particular measures that make your platform enterprise-grade?
All the things from our structure to our AI strategy is designed with enterprise-grade safety and belief in thoughts. Our CTO Chris has been doing this his total profession and is adamant about this. Let me break this down virtually. At its core, our structure ensures full knowledge isolation between organizations, with strict tenant separation and configurable retention insurance policies. We’re adamant about knowledge privateness – we by no means prepare on buyer knowledge or queries, and every thing operates on a private-by-default foundation. Consider it like working your individual safe enclave inside our platform.
For entry management, we have carried out enterprise-grade authentication with granular RBAC and MFA help. Every API key will be scoped exactly to particular permissions, giving organizations full management over how their groups work together with the platform. We have paired this with complete audit logging and safety monitoring, creating immutable information for compliance and safety opinions.
What makes our strategy distinctive is how we have constrained our AI fashions particularly to cybersecurity domains whereas sustaining full transparency. Once you ask Blackwire Labs about baking a cake it can say, “I can not construct a cake however constructing a SOC requires a layered strategy, would you want to speak about that?” It’s because we have carried out very purposeful constraints. Each response should reference validated sources by our three-tier framework, and our Safety Registry creates everlasting, verifiable information of all analyses and selections. This is not nearly “checking a field” security measures – it is about constructing a platform that safety practitioners can belief.
Blackwire Labs locations a powerful emphasis on being user-configurable. What particular customizations can purchasers leverage to suit their distinctive safety wants?
Along with what I spoke about earlier with predictive prompting and contextcraft, we’re creating capabilities for organizations to securely leverage their proprietary knowledge alongside our trusted cybersecurity insights. The place customers can incorporate their particular enterprise context – whether or not that is inner insurance policies, structure documentation, or industry-specific necessities whereas sustaining knowledge privateness and belief. This ensures their delicate knowledge by no means leaves their setting whereas nonetheless offering complete, tailor-made solutions. Take into consideration a healthcare supplier needing to align safety practices with HIPAA necessities, or a protection contractor working inside CMMC frameworks. They will combine their compliance documentation and inner insurance policies whereas leveraging our broader cybersecurity experience. The secret’s that every one of this stays cryptographically verifiable by TrustWire, sustaining our dedication to transparency and belief.
How does Blackwire Labs’ “Service First” philosophy, rooted in your navy background, form your strategy to buyer relationships and cybersecurity options?
Our “Service First” philosophy runs deeper than simply buyer relationships – it is rooted in our faith-based ethos of servant management. This implies each choice we make begins with how we are able to finest serve our group and defend organizations that want our assist.
We’ve all grown up on this mission area, we perceive the challenges safety groups face as a result of we have lived them. We have walked in our customers’ footwear. We’re constructing options we’d have wished ourselves. The safety group is small – everybody’s about one diploma separated from one another and status issues quite a bit. That is why we took a practitioner-to-practitioner strategy, bringing in design companions, advisors and beta customers (which finally became the CCOE) early to check our assumptions. We wished a lot of of us within the boat with us early and infrequently. “This product is constructed for you, assist us make it actually helpful.”
We additionally understand how safety professionals are skeptical of distributors and in lots of circumstances rightfully so. That is why we deal with fixing actual issues somewhat than advertising hype. When our customers inform us one thing wants to vary, we pay attention and act. This tight suggestions loop with our group, mixed with our dedication to service, helps us keep grounded and centered on what actually issues.
Cybersecurity is a fast-evolving subject. What methods does Blackwire Labs use to remain on the forefront of {industry} developments and threats?
Our strategy attracts from confirmed methodologies, notably ones our CTO Chris Clark carried out at Palo Alto Networks in establishing their international risk R&D functionality. Fairly than making an attempt to gather huge quantities of doubtless unreliable knowledge, we have developed a scalable, environment friendly system for data administration and risk intelligence.
We have carried out a complicated triage system the place queries that do not meet our standards for being totally answered or sourced undergo each automated and handbook evaluate processes. This creates a robust community impact the place gaps are addressed and data turns into out there to all customers. If our system cannot present a passable reply, it robotically triggers an inner evaluate.
What makes this strategy distinctive is our deal with high quality over amount. Our CCOE members, who symbolize varied industries and roles from CISOs to vulnerability researchers, assist validate our data base and fill experience gaps. By protecting normal areas comprehensively, we are able to deal with edge circumstances and rising challenges that really require specialised data.
The secret’s transparency – as I discussed earlier than our system is designed to confess when it would not have a solution, which then prompts our group to fill that data hole. Typically, it is merely a matter of rephrasing the query (or utilizing the Lexi sensible prompting to robotically create a extra nuanced immediate that the person won’t have the flexibility to create), which we are able to shortly handle. This strategy permits us to scale whereas sustaining excessive requirements for accuracy and reliability.
With the rise of Web3, quantum, and area applied sciences, how is Blackwire positioning itself to handle cybersecurity in these rising domains?
We speak to and get recommendation from a number of of us smarter than us. We’re blessed to have advisors who’re luminaries within the expertise and safety area like Matt Devost and Bob Gourley from OODA. They’ve shared insights and evaluation with us on these matters and lots of others. We’re additionally lucky to collaborate carefully with of us like Rick Howard and his Cyber Cannon venture – these are of us that many locally look to in an effort to perceive what’s subsequent. These are of us who’re members of our CCOE but additionally mentors to me. The truth that we have all been doing this for a very long time and nonetheless have a really sturdy skilled community, many who I think about shut associates, are safety executives that assist us handle each the right here and now issues and what’s subsequent. What makes this strategy highly effective is the way it informs our platform’s evolution. Whereas Web3, quantum, and area applied sciences are thrilling frontiers, we’re centered on constructing a basis of belief that may adapt to those rising domains. Our TrustWire expertise, for example, already leverages blockchain and zero-knowledge proofs – core Web3 applied sciences – to make sure knowledge integrity and privateness.
However extra importantly, we have constructed our platform to be adaptable. We constantly combine new insights and experience as these applied sciences evolve. It isn’t about chasing each new development – it is about having the appropriate experience and trusted framework to guage and reply to rising threats throughout any area after which assist our purchasers operationalize the appropriate resolution.
What are your long-term targets for Blackwire Labs, and the way do you envision its position in the way forward for AI-driven cybersecurity?
Our long-term imaginative and prescient goes past simply constructing a profitable firm – we need to basically change how organizations strategy cybersecurity within the AI period. We need to do good and champion reality. We’re working to democratize entry to expert-level cybersecurity capabilities whereas guaranteeing that AI adoption would not compromise safety or belief. We imagine the way forward for cybersecurity lies in combining human experience with reliable AI, and we’re positioning Blackwire Labs to guide that transformation. However we’ll do it thoughtfully, staying true to our ideas of transparency, humility, belief, and repair to our prospects.
Thanks for the good interview, readers who want to be taught extra ought to go to Blackwire Labs.
