CISO Tribune

Vendor comparison · 2 companies

C1.ai vs RSA Security

C1.ai gives agents policy-controlled access to models, tools, and credentials at runtime. RSA Security sells identity and access management products, including RSA ID Plus, which includes SSO, MFA and directory services across cloud, hybrid and on-premises environments. CISO Tribune files both under Identity governance and administration. This page sets the two records side by side: what each sells, where it is based, who owns and funds it, the customers it names and its recent news, each fact numbered to its source.

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  • C1.ai
  • RSA Security
C1.ai vs RSA Security: Products, Customers and Funding Compared
C1.aiC1.ai gives agents policy-controlled access to models, tools, and credentials at runtime.c1.aiRSA SecurityRSA Security sells identity and access management products, including RSA ID Plus, which includes SSO, MFA and directory services across cloud, hybrid and on-premises environments.rsa.com
What it sells
  • AI-Native Identity Governance[1][2]Automates lifecycle, access requests, reviews, and compliance for human and non-human identities.
  • NHI & Identity Security[1][2]Discovers and alerts on identity and non-human identity risks across the workforce and agents.
  • Agent SSO & Runtime Governance[1][2]Enforces runtime guardrails and access controls for AI agents, with human-in-the-loop approval.
  • Apps & MCP Self Service[1][2]Provides on-demand self-service access to approved apps, MCPs, and AI tools.
  • Deploy Custom Agents[1][2]Lets organizations run autonomous agents across connected systems with guardrails.
  • Shadow AI Discovery[1][2]Finds unsanctioned AI tools, agents, MCP servers, and credentials in use.
  • RSA Agent ID[1][7][10]An agentic AI security platform for government, financial services and other highly-regulated organizations.
  • RSA ID Plus[1][2][7]An identity and access management platform that includes SSO, MFA and directory services.
  • Governance & Lifecycle[1][2][4][8]An identity governance and administration (IGA) offering from RSA.
Categories
Headquarters
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Founded
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Ownership and funding
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Named customers
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Recent news
  • October 13, 2026Workday announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire C1.ai, with the transaction expected to close in the fourth quarter of Workday's fiscal year 2027, ending January 31, 2027.[9]
  • September 29, 2026RSA announced RSA Agent ID, an agentic identity security platform for highly regulated industries, at The AI Conference in San Francisco.[10]
G2 and Gartner Peer Insights
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
  • G2: listed, seen November 10, 2026[11]
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
Who it fits
From its own pages, C1.ai sells to organisations that manage access for people, non-human identities, and agents, and to technical teams that extend the platform through APIs and Terraform. The pages describe governed access for infrastructure teams through the tools they already use. The pages cover on-premises technology such as Active Directory and back-office apps. A named energy-sector customer sought an identity governance solution after an external auditor recommended one to streamline user access reviews.RSA Security says it designs its identity solutions for finance, government and high-assurance organizations, and RSA Agent ID is aimed at highly-regulated organizations. RSA Security names federal, state and local agencies among the customers it helps with Zero Trust mandates. RSA Security offers phishing-resistant authentication, help desk identity verification and access governance to financial services organizations. RSA Security describes its identity capabilities as working across cloud, hybrid and on-premises environments.
Last verified
November 2, 2026October 26, 2026

Where they overlap

  • C1.ai and RSA Security are both filed under Identity governance and administration.

Where they differ, field by field

  • C1.ai's primary category is Identity governance and administration; RSA Security's is Workforce IAM and SSO.
  • C1.ai is also filed under Non-human identity security, Privileged access management and AI model and agent security. RSA Security is also filed under Passwordless authentication and authenticators.
  • C1.ai lists AI-Native Identity Governance, NHI & Identity Security, Agent SSO & Runtime Governance, Apps & MCP Self Service, Deploy Custom Agents and 1 more. RSA Security lists RSA Agent ID, RSA ID Plus and Governance & Lifecycle.

What it sells: RSA Security

What RSA Agent ID does[1][7][10]
RSA Agent ID discovers AI agents and MCP servers, assigns each one an accountable human owner, and enforces policy on every call through an AI/MCP Gateway. RSA Agent ID records audit evidence of every agent action. Gateways can be RSA-hosted or customer-hosted in cloud, hybrid or on-premises environments.
What RSA ID Plus does[1][2][7]
RSA ID Plus is an identity and access management platform that includes SSO, MFA and directory services. RSA ID Plus runs across cloud, hybrid and on-premises environments. RSA Agent ID integrates with RSA ID Plus.
What Governance & Lifecycle does[1][2][4][8]
RSA Governance & Lifecycle is an identity governance and administration (IGA) offering. Sorenson uses RSA Governance & Lifecycle to move beyond MFA to passwordless across cloud, hybrid, and on-premises environments. RSA explains how to submit a ticket for technical problems with RSA Governance & Lifecycle.

Questions about C1.ai and RSA Security

What do C1.ai and RSA Security sell?
C1.ai sells AI-Native Identity Governance, NHI & Identity Security, Agent SSO & Runtime Governance, Apps & MCP Self Service, Deploy Custom Agents and 1 more. RSA Security sells RSA Agent ID, RSA ID Plus and Governance & Lifecycle.
Are C1.ai and RSA Security in the same category?
They share Identity governance and administration. C1.ai's primary category is Identity governance and administration and RSA Security's is Workforce IAM and SSO.
Who are C1.ai and RSA Security sold to?
From its own pages, C1.ai sells to organisations that manage access for people, non-human identities, and agents, and to technical teams that extend the platform through APIs and Terraform. RSA Security says it designs its identity solutions for finance, government and high-assurance organizations, and RSA Agent ID is aimed at highly-regulated organizations.
What have C1.ai and RSA Security announced recently?
October 13, 2026: Workday announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire C1.ai, with the transaction expected to close in the fourth quarter of Workday's fiscal year 2027, ending January 31, 2027. September 29, 2026: RSA announced RSA Agent ID, an agentic identity security platform for highly regulated industries, at The AI Conference in San Francisco.

About C1.ai

C1.ai gives agents policy-controlled access to models, tools, and credentials at runtime. C1 Agents complete multi-step jobs across connected systems, with human approval for sensitive changes. C1.ai connects to SaaS, cloud infra providers, on-prem systems, and MCP servers.[2]

On the governance side, C1.ai turns HR and directory events into day-one account and access changes across supported systems. C1.ai provisions users the access they need based on conditions and policy. C1.ai applies policy-based provisioning and routing to any connected system. C1.ai covers user access reviews and separation-of-duties (SoD) conflict detection. C1.ai gives people and agents self-service access to approved applications and AI tools, with policy applied before fulfillment.[1][2][3]

For self-service, C1.ai makes approved apps, MCP servers, AI tools, roles, and permissions discoverable from one catalog. People and agents can request access from the web, Slack, Microsoft Teams, MCP, API, or CLI. C1.ai auto-approves routine access and routes sensitive requests using identity, role, resource, and risk context. C1.ai expires just-in-time access automatically so temporary permissions do not become standing access.[4]

For cloud infrastructure, C1.ai provides engineers and agents with precisely scoped cloud access. C1.ai reads cloud providers' resource trees, preserving the parent-child relationships each platform uses natively. C1.ai resolves inherited permissions in real time. C1.ai provisions, adjusts, and revokes access automatically as roles change, teams shift, or agents are redeployed.

Every action in the console is available via API, and C1.ai operates as an MCP server. C1.ai governs human, service, workload, and AI agent identities from one control plane. C1.ai logs every action with full context: subject, actor, delegation chain, purpose, resource, policy, and outcome. C1.ai supports policies as Terraform, AI-written CEL and functions, and validation via API. Technical teams extend C1.ai with APIs, custom functions, CLI, webhooks, and an AI integration builder, and manage it with Terraform.[2][6]

C1.ai includes 300+ connectors, built on Baton, which is open source under Apache 2.0, that integrate IdPs, directories, SaaS apps, cloud infrastructure, and on-prem systems into one identity graph. The connectors can be hosted or self-hosted. The identity graph ingests identity, permission, and resource data from all of your systems. C1.ai visualizes access paths for users, non-human identities, applications, and resources. C1.ai addresses access risks such as orphaned accounts, inactive users, and high-risk users. C1.ai offers built-in remediation options such as downgrading access, offboarding accounts, and securing service accounts. C1.ai connects to non-cloud infrastructure, including LDAP, Postgres, and Microsoft SQL. C1.ai covers on-premises technology such as Active Directory and homegrown and back-office apps.[1][6][7]

IGS Energy started looking for a partner after an external auditor recommended an identity governance solution to streamline user access reviews.[1][2][8]

C1.ai on the record

Sources

C1.ai full record

  1. [1]conductorone.comConductorOne (C1.ai) · conductorone.com · undated page, accessed November 2, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]C1.ai | Put AI to WorkC1.ai · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]AI-Native Identity Governance Solutions | C1.aiC1.ai · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]Self-Service Access for Apps, MCPs, and AI Tools | C1.aiC1.ai · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Infrastructure Access - C1.aiC1.ai · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Headless Identity Infrastructure | C1.aiC1.ai · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]Identity Graph - C1.aiC1.ai · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]Automating access management and reducing risk for IGS Energy’s hybrid environment | C1.aiC1.ai · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Workday to Acquire C1.ai, a Leading Agentic Identity Platform for People and AgentsC1.ai · published October 13, 2026 · Tier A

RSA Security full record

  1. [1]rsa.comRSA Security · rsa.com · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]RSA Security: Identity & Access Management SolutionsRSA Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]RSA Tokens & Authenticators for Identity Security TeamsRSA Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]IAM Solutions: SSO, MFA, Governance & Passwordless | RSARSA Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]SSO: Single Sign-On Identity Access Solutions | RSARSA Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Add or Delete a Trusted Location | RSA CommunityRSA Community · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]RSA Agent ID: The agentic identity security platform for highly-regulated industriesRSA Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]Services Overview - RSARSA Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]RSA-2026-18: RSA Security Update for PHP Vulnerabilities | RSA CommunityRSA Community · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Hope Isn’t an AI Strategy: RSA Agent ID Closes the Agentic Identity Gap for Highly Regulated IndustriesRSA · published September 29, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]RSA Services Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & FeaturesG2 · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier C

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