Paladin Capital Group Issues Report on the International State of Safety Tech in 2023

Report Builds on Findings from Paladin's 2022 Report on the U.S. Safety Tech Market

Report Produced in Partnership with PUBLIC, Perspective Economics, and Leading Cyberpsychologist Dr. Mary Aiken

WASHINGTON, Dec. 6, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Paladin Capital Group, a leading multi-stage investor in advanced cyber and AI technologies, today released its second report on the state of the Safety Tech industry, building on its 2022 report which found evidence of an emerging billion-dollar US market. This updated report analyzed the market with an assessment across multiple countries, governments, and sectors. The report—completed by Paladin Capital Group, PUBLIC's Online Safety team, with the support of Perspective Economics and leading cyberpsychologist and Paladin's Chief Scientist Safety Tech, Dr. Mary Aiken—found that the international Safety Tech market is experiencing rapid year-to-year growth. In the past three years alone, Safety Tech firms have raised $4.8 billion. That is nearly triple the amount raised between 2011 – 2020.

"Safety Tech" refers to the class of technologies or solutions designed to facilitate safer online experiences and protect users from harmful content, contact or conduct. Whereas cybersecurity relates to protecting data, systems and networks, Safety Tech protects the people who use technology. Solutions in this space focus on reducing risk and harm to users in the everyday online environments by protecting people from mis/disinformation, online harassment, hate, discrimination, and online terrorist content, which increasingly threatens democracy and civil society.

"In today's online society, users are faced with growing cyberattacks that not only threaten cyberspace, but also their well-being," said Chris Steed, Paladin Chief Investment Officer and Managing Director. "Paladin was founded with the commitment to recognize and address the vulnerabilities facing our critical infrastructure. Over two decades later, that commitment hasn't changed. Now, we need to help the humans who operate in cyberspace to become resilient and secure."

This inaugural International State of Safety Tech report establishes a baseline that will be updated on an annual basis going forward, updating the data on the international landscape, increasing awareness of the maturity and impact of Safety Tech offerings, and driving growth in the Safety Tech sector internationally. Through a combination of desk research, expert interviews, and quantitative market analysis, the researchers found:

• The number of dedicated Safety Tech providers has almost tripled in the last decade globally to a total of 537 private sector firms or organizations. Across 37 countries, nearly 17,000 people are employed in the Safety Tech industry. 
  
  
• The United States and the United Kingdom together are leading the industry, collectively home to about three-quarters of Safety Tech companies.
  
  
• In the U.S., more Safety Tech firms are being acquired and embedded into larger tech companies, a trend expected to rise and continue in the coming years.
  
  
• In 2024, we expect to see greater attention on solutions to improve election integrity and tackle mis/disinformation, driven by global conflict and upcoming high-profile elections in countries that account for over 50% of global GDP.
  
  
• Rapidly developing generative AI technologies and landmark online safety legislation in the EU and UK present unique threats and opportunities to the industry. The recent passing of the Online Safety Act in the UK positions it as a global leader and policymaker in Safety Tech.

"The widespread impact of online harm is now well recognized, presenting users with psychological risks, criminal dangers, and extremism," said Dr. Mary Aiken, Paladin Chief Scientist Safety Tech and Member of Strategic Advisory Group. "Governments and companies must continue to take greater responsibility for protecting our collective cyber future and those who are vulnerable online. Those of us in the Safety Tech industry must continue to promote research, partnerships, policies, and solutions to create the future we want today and tomorrow—both online and in the real world. This report is a culmination of years of research and hard work."

"With new online safety regulation coming into force in the UK and EU and Generative AI tools emerging at a rapid pace, we are at an exciting watershed moment for the Safety Tech sector," said Alex de Carvalho, CEO & Co-Founder at PUBLIC. "What's more, as nearly half of the world's population heads to the polls in 2024 there is a huge opportunity and great urgency for governments, regulators, investors, and industry to further catalyze the online Safety Tech sector to protect citizens online."

At a time of heightened concern around online safety, the report guides policymakers on how to navigate previously unfamiliar situations to protect Americans online. "We are familiar with national security challenges concerning the protection of critical infrastructure; however, the cyber threat landscape is changing, and now we face the challenge of securing 'human infrastructure,'" said Congressman James Langevin, Member of Paladin Strategic Advisory Group. "The global policy and regulatory environment is increasingly concerned with protecting users from online harm. While there has been reluctance in some corners among policymakers to regulate in the online safety arena, it's clear the tide is shifting."

 The report is forward-facing, looking to guide both policymakers and tech companies as they work to develop Artificial Intelligence technology safely. "There is an essential and urgent need to develop frameworks, based on rapidly evolving private sector best practices, to instill trust, safety, and security into the core of AI development and deployment process in the international Safety Tech sector," said Chris Inglis, Paladin Senior Strategic Advisor and former U.S. National Cyber Director.

Based on the findings of the research, the report provides a set of tailored recommendations for governments, regulators, international bodies, investors, leading tech companies, and Safety Tech providers in order to drive the next wave of growth in the sector internationally. In this of what will be a yearly report, Paladin, Dr. Aiken, and PUBLIC have put together a roadmap for experts to reference in coming years.

The full report is available here.

About Paladin Capital Group

Paladin Capital Group was founded in 2001 and has offices in Washington DC, New York, London, Luxembourg, and Silicon Valley. As a multi-stage investor, Paladin's core strength is identifying, supporting and investing in innovative companies that develop promising, early-stage technologies to address the critical cyber and advanced technological needs of both commercial and government customers. Combining proven investment experience with deep expertise in global security, cyber technology and cutting-edge research, Paladin has invested in more than 70 companies since 2008 and has been a trusted partner to investors, entrepreneurs and governments for over two decades.

For more on Paladin Capital Group, follow us on Twitter at @Paladincap and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/paladin-capital-group or visit us at www.paladincapgroup.com.

About PUBLIC

PUBLIC is a digital transformation partner committed to helping the public sector turn innovative ideas into practical solutions Combining expertise around government policy, delivery, and technology, PUBLIC aims to build a public sector that is powered by new technologies and innovative ways of working, achieving better outcomes for citizens. As one of Europe's leading advisory firms with a specialism in online safety, PUBLIC works closely with clients across central government, regulator bodies and industry to build safer online spaces, protect users and grow a responsible digital economy.

For more on PUBLIC, follow us on Twitter at @PUBLIC_Team and on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/public.io/ or visit us at https://www.public.io/.

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