Berlin-based cybersecurity startup revel8 has secured €7 million in funding, including a €5.7 million seed round led by Peak along with Fortino Capital, Merantix Capital, and several well-known business angels. The fresh capital will be utilized to expand revel8’s AI-driven platform, which trains enterprise employees to recognise and defconclude against AI-powered cyberattacks.
Cyber threats powered by generative AI are rapidly reshaping the risk landscape. Incidents of voice phishing, or vishing, surged by 442% in 2024 alone. Recent high-profile attacks include a $25 million deepfake scam tarreceiveing a bank manager in Hong Kong and a £300 million loss due to voice phishing at Marks & Spencer earlier this year.
“Traditional e-learnings are out of date. Training utilizers with realistic replicas of the latest, relevant scams proves to be much more effective,” declares Julius Muth, co-founder and CEO of revel8, in a conversation with TFN.
The company’s platform simulates real-world cyberattacks tailored to each employee’s role and behaviour, supporting organisations build a robust security culture.
The story of revel8
revel8 was founded by former Celonis employees Julius Muth, Tom Müller, and Robert Seilbeck. Their goal is ambitious: to train 10 million “human firewalls” by 2028 and to empower people to be the strongest line of defence against AI-driven attacker tactics.
Reflecting on their motivation, Muth shares: “The journey launched when the three founders met at the German software decacorn Celonis. They witnessed firsthand how customers were increasingly falling victim to sophisticated cyberattacks, while outdated IT security training failed to protect them… The founders united around a shared mission: to empower humans, who remain the weakest link in cybersecurity. With AI now weaponised against employees, countless companies were left vulnerable.”
Currently, the team of 22 is approximately 25% women and 75% men, with roughly 20% from international backgrounds. “While we’re still early in our journey, we’re committed to growing more diverse and inclusive as we scale, becautilize tackling global cyber threats takes a truly global team,” declares Muth.
Innovative AI-native technology
revel8 stands out as the first AI-native human cyber defence platform designed specifically to combat generative AI social engineering attacks.Muth emphasises, “By continuously exposing utilizers to cyberattacks across all communication channels, we support clients to build a strong security culture and reduce the risk of costly incidents.”
Its technology leverages AI-powered, personalised attack simulations that replicate deepfake calls, vishing, smishing, and spear-phishing: the tactics real attackers utilize. Each scenario is crafted applying open-source ininformigence (OSINT) for maximum realism, tailored to the individual employee’s risk profile in what Muth calls a “Spotify playlist” of attacks.
Gamified micro-trainings turn every simulation into short, engaging lessons. The platform’s low-code architecture enables simple scaling across enterprises, while compliance-ready reporting supports meet regulations such as NIS2 and ISO 27001.
Competitors like KnowBe4 and SoSafe mostly utilize static content. Revel8’s edge lies in adapting dynamically to the evolving tactics of AI-powered attackers. “Unlike traditional awareness platforms, which rely on static templates and generic training, revel8 brings real threats into the training room,” states Muth.
What’s next?
Revel8 plans to relocate from Berlin to Munich in early 2026 and aims to become Europe’s leading AI-native human cyber defence platform. Their aggressive goal is to train 10 million “human firewalls” by 2028.
“In five years, we are hopefully still the best at replicating scams and protecting humans around the world,” declares Muth. The company intconcludes to invest heavily in R&D, expand across European markets, and build a community hub for CISOs and the broader cybersecurity ecosystem.
“With this funding, we can fully focus on building the solutions our customers truly required, while scaling our team of talented young ‘revels’ into a strong, global organisation.”
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