AI Security & Safety Platforms Comparison
Compare AI model security and safety platforms - adversarial protection, model scanning, red teaming, guardrails, and compliance.
TL;DR
Comparing Protect AI, HiddenLayer, Robust Intelligence, Lakera, CalypsoAI, Adversa AI across 47 features in 9 categories.
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| Feature |  Protect AI |  HiddenLayer |  Robust Intelligence |  Lakera |  CalypsoAI |  Adversa AI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| General | ||||||
| Headquarters | Seattle, WA | Austin, TX | San Francisco, CA (now Cisco) | Zurich, Switzerland | Washington, D.C. | Tel Aviv, Israel |
| Founded | 2022 | 2022 | 2020 (acquired by Cisco 2024) | 2021 | 2018 | 2019 |
| Company Type | Private | Private | Acquired (Cisco, public: CSCO) | Private | Private | Private |
| Total Funding | ~$108M (Series B, Oct 2024) | ~$56M (Series A, 2023) | ~$44M pre-acquisition | ~$20M (Series A, 2024) | ~$68M+ (incl. U.S. gov contracts) | ~$5M (Seed) |
| Core Focus | End-to-end ML security platform & supply chain | Model-level threat detection & protection | AI validation, red teaming & firewall | LLM guardrails & prompt injection defense | AI security, governance & policy enforcement | Adversarial AI red teaming & robustness testing |
| Core Capabilities | ||||||
| Model Vulnerability Scanning(?) | ||||||
| Prompt Injection Protection(?) | ||||||
| LLM Guardrails / Content Filtering(?) | Limited | |||||
| Adversarial Testing / Red Teaming(?) | Limited | |||||
| Data Poisoning Detection(?) | ||||||
| Model Supply Chain Security(?) | Limited | |||||
| AI Firewall / Gateway(?) | ||||||
| Compliance & Governance(?) | Limited | |||||
| Products & Technology | ||||||
| Primary Product(s) | Guardian (model scanning), Radar (ML BOM/visibility), Layer (guardrails runtime) | AISec Platform (Model Scanner, MLDR, AI Detection & Response) | AI Firewall, AI Validation (continuous testing), RI Red Teaming | Lakera Guard (API-based guardrails & prompt injection defense) | Moderator (real-time AI policy enforcement & content filtering) | AI Red Teaming Platform (automated adversarial testing & audits) |
| Open Source Tools | ModelScan, NB Defense, LLM Guard (OSS portfolio) | Gandalf (prompt injection game/benchmark) | ||||
| Bug Bounty / Community(?) | huntr.com (AI/ML bug bounty platform, largest in world) | Gandalf community challenge | ||||
| AI/ML SBOM (Software Bill of Materials)(?) | ||||||
| Model Risk Scoring(?) | ||||||
| Deployment & Architecture | ||||||
| SaaS / Cloud-Hosted | ||||||
| On-Premise / Self-Hosted | ||||||
| API-Based Integration | ||||||
| Air-Gapped / FedRAMP(?) | Via Cisco | |||||
| Low-Latency Inline Mode(?) | ||||||
| Integrations & Compatibility | ||||||
| OpenAI / GPT Models | ||||||
| Anthropic / Claude | ||||||
| Google / Gemini | ||||||
| Hugging Face Models | Limited | Limited | ||||
| AWS Bedrock / SageMaker | Limited | |||||
| Azure AI / Azure ML | Limited | |||||
| Open Source Models (Llama, Mistral, etc.) | ||||||
| CI/CD Pipeline Integration(?) | Limited | |||||
| SIEM / SOC Integration(?) | Via Cisco SecureX | |||||
| Compliance Frameworks | ||||||
| OWASP Top 10 for LLMs | ||||||
| NIST AI Risk Management Framework | Limited | |||||
| EU AI Act Readiness | Limited | |||||
| MITRE ATLAS Coverage(?) | ||||||
| SOC 2 Certified | Via Cisco | Not disclosed | ||||
| Pricing & Licensing | ||||||
| Pricing Model | Enterprise subscription + open source tools | Enterprise subscription | Enterprise (via Cisco) | Freemium (free tier + usage-based + enterprise) | Enterprise subscription | Enterprise subscription + assessment engagements |
| Free / Open Source Tier | ||||||
| Usage-Based Pricing | ||||||
| Free Trial / Demo | Via Cisco sales | |||||
| Customers & Partnerships | ||||||
| Target Segments | Enterprise, financial services, government/defense | Enterprise, government, defense/intel community | Enterprise (now Cisco's AI security offering) | Startups to enterprise building LLM apps | U.S. government, defense, federal agencies | Enterprise, regulated industries, government |
| Notable Customers / Partners | AWS, Accenture, Dell; U.S. DoD contracts | U.S. DoD, Intel community; Gartner Cool Vendor 2023 | Cisco portfolio; J.P. Morgan, ADP (pre-acquisition) | Dropbox, Musixmatch; backed by Redpoint Ventures | U.S. Air Force, DoD; In-Q-Tel backed | Banking and defense sector clients; OWASP contributor |
| Government / Defense Focus | Limited | |||||
| Key Investors / Backers | Evolution Equity, Salesforce Ventures, Acrew Capital | Ten Eleven Ventures, Moore Strategic Ventures, M12 (Microsoft) | Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global (acquired by Cisco ~$500M, 2024) | Redpoint Ventures, Citi Ventures | In-Q-Tel, Paladin Capital, National Security Innovation Fund | Undisclosed seed investors |
| Differentiators | ||||||
| Key Strength | Broadest ML security platform with open source ecosystem (ModelScan, huntr) | Deep model-level threat detection without needing access to training data | Cisco network-level integration; continuous AI validation pipeline | Developer-friendly API; best-in-class prompt injection detection | Strong government/defense pedigree; policy-driven AI governance | Deep adversarial ML research expertise; comprehensive red teaming |
| Key Limitation | Newer company; enterprise features still maturing | Less focus on LLM-specific guardrails vs. model-level threats | Acquisition integration; standalone availability unclear | Focused primarily on LLM guardrails; less model scanning depth | Heavily gov-focused; smaller commercial ecosystem | Smaller team; less product maturity vs. larger competitors |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between Protect AI and HiddenLayer?
Protect AI and HiddenLayer are both leading tools in this category but serve different use cases. Our comparison breaks down their differences across performance, pricing, reliability, and ease of use — so you can pick the right one for your workflow.
Which is better: Protect AI or HiddenLayer?
The answer depends on your use case. Protect AI typically excels for users who prioritise ecosystem integrations and ease of onboarding. HiddenLayer tends to lead on performance depth. See our full score breakdown and "choose if" guide above for a definitive recommendation.
How is We Compare AI's comparison data collected?
All data is collected independently by our team of AI specialists using a standardised benchmark methodology. We test each tool directly, track public pricing from official sources, and update scores when models release significant updates. No vendor pays to appear or influence their ranking.
How does Protect AI compare to Robust Intelligence?
Protect AI and Robust Intelligence target overlapping use cases but differ in pricing models and feature sets. Our comparison table above includes Robust Intelligence alongside Protect AI and HiddenLayer so you can evaluate all options side by side.
Is there a free version of Protect AI?
Most major AI tools including Protect AI offer a free tier with usage limits. Check our pricing comparison above for exact plan details, token limits, and cost-per-million-token breakdowns for Protect AI, HiddenLayer, Robust Intelligence, Lakera, CalypsoAI, Adversa AI.
Last updated: 2026-02-11 · How we collect data →