Noname Security
API security and threat detection product, now part of Akamai after 2024 acquisition.
On the record
Checkpoint: Akamai Q3/Q4 2026 earnings disclosure on API Security segment growth
The call
Noname Security stopped being an independent bet in mid-2024. What remains is a product line inside Akamai, its fate now tied to Akamai's roadmap and earnings, not startup upside.
Noname Security made tools to protect application programming interfaces, which are the connections that let different software talk to each other. Akamai, a large public company that runs internet infrastructure, bought Noname for about $450 million in mid-2024 because the product fit well with Akamai's existing security services like firewalls and attack prevention. The real competition now comes from Cloudflare and Palo Alto Networks, which offer similar protections and move quickly with new features, but Akamai's size and its ability to bundle many security tools together give it a strong position. The one thing to watch is whether Akamai lets the API Security product keep its own identity and roadmap or absorbs it so much that it loses speed compared to faster-moving rivals.
Why
01
AI pressure: Cloudflare API Shield, Palo Alto Networks (via Dig). AI-driven API sprawl (agents, MCP tools) grows the problem Noname's tech was built for, feeding demand rather than replacing it. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.
02
Bigger players: Akamai Technologies (already owns it), Cloudflare, Palo Alto Networks. Noname no longer competes independently. It lives or dies as a line item inside Akamai while Cloudflare and Palo Alto Networks push rival API security offerings. Could a giant copy it? Probably.
03
What protects it. Deep bundling into Akamai's edge network (CDN, WAF, DDoS, bot defense) and enterprise customers like Commerzbank already wired into the platform.
What would change this call
Akamai Q3/Q4 2026 earnings disclose API Security segment growth or shrinkage. Shows whether the acquired Noname product is expanding or being deprioritized inside Akamai.
Akamai rebrands or folds Noname product fully into generic App and API Protector line. Would indicate loss of distinct product identity and roadmap autonomy.
Departure of remaining Noname founding engineers or leadership from Akamai. Would signal erosion of the original team and institutional knowledge behind the product.
Akamai rebrands or folds Noname product fully into generic App and API Protector line. Would indicate loss of distinct product identity and roadmap autonomy.
Departure of remaining Noname founding engineers or leadership from Akamai. Would signal erosion of the original team and institutional knowledge behind the product.
Key numbers
- Acquired by Akamai for ~$450M
- Contributed ~$20M revenue to Akamai FY2024
- Prior peak valuation $1B (Dec 2021)
Named risks
- Product could be quietly folded into generic Akamai App and API Protector branding, losing distinct identity.
- Departure of CEO Oz Golan or remaining core Noname engineering leadership post-acquisition.
- Heavy category consolidation (Cloudflare, PANW, F5, Thales-Imperva, Harness-Traceable) eroding differentiation.
- No return to startup-equity valuation is possible after the $450M acquisition closed in June 2024.
- Post-acquisition integration described as still mid-settling as of mid-2026, with pricing and roadmap uncertainty.
Rivals, as read in July 2026
| Rival | Direction | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Cloudflare | contesting | Edge-scale API Shield competes directly with Akamai API Security's telemetry moat, as of 2026 |
| Palo Alto Networks | contesting | Entered API security via Dig Security acquisition, intensifying M&A-driven consolidation, 2026 |
| Salt Security | contesting | Named closest direct competitor in runtime behavioral detection, per June 14, 2026 comparison |
| Traceable (Harness) | contesting | Harness-Traceable merger cited as part of three major API security consolidations by June 2026 |
| Imperva (Thales) | contesting | Thales-Imperva deal bundles API security into broader WAF suites, noted June 24, 2026 |
Questions people ask
- Is Noname Security still an independent company?
- No. Noname Security was fully acquired by Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM) in a deal that closed June 24-25, 2024, for approximately $450M. It now operates as Akamai API Security, a product line inside Akamai rather than a standalone company.
- How much did Akamai pay for Noname Security?
- Akamai paid approximately $450M to acquire Noname Security, confirmed May 7, 2024 and closed June 24-25, 2024. This was below Noname's earlier $1B private valuation reached in its December 2021 Series C funding round.
- Could AI replace Noname Security's (Akamai API Security) product?
- Unlikely to be replaced outright. AI/ML already powers runtime detection industry-wide, so differentiation is shifting to data and telemetry rather than model access. Akamai's edge-scale traffic data and 2026 MCP vulnerability research (e.g., CVE-2025-66335, May 2026) position it to ride AI-driven API growth rather than be displaced by it.
- Who is Noname Security's biggest competitor now that it's part of Akamai?
- As Akamai API Security, its closest rivals are Salt Security, Cequence Security, Traceable (now owned by Harness), Wallarm, and 42Crunch, per a June 14, 2026 comparison. Broader competitive pressure also comes from Cloudflare, Palo Alto Networks (via its Dig acquisition), and F5/Imperva.
- Did Noname Security's founders stay after the Akamai acquisition?
- Partially. CEO Oz Golan joined Akamai to run its API security division (reported August 6, 2024), but co-founder and CTO Shay Levi had already departed before the acquisition closed in June 2024, according to a May 7, 2024 Calcalistech report.
- What was Noname Security's revenue before being acquired?
- Estimates vary: Sacra estimated roughly $40M ARR in 2023, while Akamai stated the deal was expected to add approximately $20M in revenue to Akamai's FY2024, per TechCrunch's May 7, 2024 report on the $450M acquisition.
Timeline
- 2026-06-25Akamai publishes analysis of upcoming stateless MCP spec ahead of its July 28, 2026 official release
- 2026-05-13Akamai discloses MCP server vulnerabilities (CVE-2025-66335) in Apache Doris, Pinot, Alibaba RDS
- 2025-10-15Akamai publishes RCE/SSRF findings in Anthropic MCP Inspector (CVE-2025-49596) and Markdownify MCP Server
- 2024-09-11Noname/Akamai platform v3.30 ships with attacker-IP tracking and Kubernetes Operator deployment
- 2024-08-06CEO Oz Golan joins Akamai to run its API security division
- 2024-06-25Akamai completes acquisition of Noname Security
- 2024-05-07Akamai confirms Noname acquisition at approximately $450M
- 2024-04-12TechCrunch first reports Akamai-Noname acquisition talks at approximately $500M
- 2021-12-15Noname raises $135M Series C at $1B valuation, becomes first API security unicorn
- 2020-12-15Noname Security launches from stealth with $25M in funding
Revision history
21 July 2026
First assessed. Hard to displace. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.
In the same band
Sources
- Akamai confirms acquisition of Noname for $450M (2024-05-07)
- Akamai Completes Acquisition of API Security Company Noname (2024-06-25)
- Noname Security Raises $135 Million in Series C at $1B Valuation (2021-12-15)
- Akamai acquiring cyber startup Noname Security for $450 million (2024-05-07)
- Noname Security revenue, valuation & funding
- Akamai API Security Review 2026 (2026-05-18)
- AI Security at Machine Speed (2026-06-10)
- Akamai acquiring cyber startup Noname Security for $450 million (2024-05-07)
- Noname Launches from Stealth to Eliminate API Security Chaos for Enterprises (2020-12-15)
- Israeli co Noname Security raises $60m (2021-06-30)
- Noname Security hits $1B valuation after $135M Series C raise (2021-12-15)
- Noname Security Platform Updates: 3.30 Release (2024-09-11)