CISO Tribune

Vendor comparison · 2 companies

Cygrid vs Valence

Cygrid sells a platform that finds shadow AI, over-scoped tokens and leftover admin rights across SaaS, checks every action by humans, service accounts and AI agents, and secures actions by applying customer policy. Valence sells a platform that discovers and protects human, non-human, and AI agent identities across endpoint, cloud, and SaaS. CISO Tribune files both under Non-human identity security and Identity threat detection and response. 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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Up to four companies side by side.

  • Cygrid
  • Valence
Cygrid vs Valence: Products, Customers and Funding Compared
CygridCygrid sells a platform that finds shadow AI, over-scoped tokens and leftover admin rights across SaaS, checks every action by humans, service accounts and AI agents, and secures actions by applying customer policy.cygrid.ioValenceValence sells a platform that discovers and protects human, non-human, and AI agent identities across endpoint, cloud, and SaaS.valencesecurity.com
What it sells
  • Identity Intelligence Graph[1][4]Holds humans, non-human identities, AI agents, tokens, MCP servers and resources in one graph.
  • MCP Gateway[3][8]Sits in the tool-call path and audits, allows, rewrites or blocks every agent tool call at runtime.
  • SaaS Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR)Monitors identity activity across SaaS to detect threats.
Categories
Headquarters
Berlin, Germany[2]Not stated on its pages
Founded
2026[2][3]Not 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
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
G2 and Gartner Peer Insights
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
  • G2: listed, seen November 4, 2026[4]
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
Who it fits
Finance teams whose AI agents work with ledger and bank data are among the audiences it addresses. Mid-sized retailers that run several stores are among the audiences it addresses. IT operations teams dealing with unused accounts, standing admin rights and forgotten tokens across SaaS are an audience, as are security and compliance teams that need evidence for NIS2, DORA and the EU AI Act.From its own pages, Valence sells mainly to security teams that need to discover, protect, and detect and respond to threats across their SaaS and AI ecosystem. Valence also addresses SaaS admins, who work with security teams on a unified view of SaaS and AI risks. Valence works with business users to understand and address risks they configured. Valence offers a route for organizations that want to develop integrations for proprietary or highly specialized SaaS apps. Valence says its platform helps find and fix risks across mission-critical SaaS applications.
Last verified
October 23, 2026November 2, 2026

Where they overlap

  • Cygrid and Valence are both filed under Non-human identity security and Identity threat detection and response.

Where they differ, field by field

  • Cygrid's primary category is Non-human identity security; Valence's is SaaS security posture.
  • Cygrid is also filed under AI governance and AI firewalls and guardrails.
  • Cygrid lists Identity Intelligence Graph and MCP Gateway. Valence lists SaaS Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR).
  • Cygrid is headquartered in Berlin, Germany.
  • Cygrid was founded in 2026.

What it sells: Cygrid

What Identity Intelligence Graph does[1][4]
Cygrid models the action, meaning the permission actually in play, in full context. The graph models access as SaaS actions rather than roles, so risk can be compared across tools.

What it sells: Valence

What SaaS Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) does
Valence delivers identity threat detection and response across a SaaS ecosystem. Valence monitors activity across users, service accounts, tokens, and integrations to identify suspicious access patterns, privilege abuse, and signs of compromise. Valence correlates events across applications to uncover threats that are difficult to detect in isolation.

Questions about Cygrid and Valence

What do Cygrid and Valence sell?
Cygrid sells Identity Intelligence Graph and MCP Gateway. Valence sells SaaS Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR).
Are Cygrid and Valence in the same category?
They share Non-human identity security and Identity threat detection and response. Cygrid's primary category is Non-human identity security and Valence's is SaaS security posture.
Where are Cygrid and Valence headquartered?
Cygrid is headquartered in Berlin, Germany.
When were Cygrid and Valence founded?
Cygrid was founded in 2026.
Who are Cygrid and Valence sold to?
Finance teams whose AI agents work with ledger and bank data are among the audiences it addresses. From its own pages, Valence sells mainly to security teams that need to discover, protect, and detect and respond to threats across their SaaS and AI ecosystem.

About Cygrid

Cygrid sells a platform that finds shadow AI, over-scoped tokens and leftover admin rights across SaaS, checks every action by humans, service accounts and AI agents, and secures actions by applying customer policy. Cygrid puts humans, service accounts, API connections and AI agents in one Identity Intelligence Graph. Cygrid connects identity, SaaS, cloud and AI sources into the Identity Intelligence Graph and secures every identity at three enforcement points: before first use, while access exists and at runtime. Cygrid offers one platform to discover, clean up, audit and secure access across SaaS.[1][4][5][6][9]

Cygrid models the action, meaning the permission actually in play, in full context. The graph records what each identity may do, what it actually does and on whose behalf, and policy rules and AI-driven analysis score the risk together. Cygrid discovers the AI agents, MCP servers and connected apps across SaaS, maps each one to the person it acts for, and records who approved what.[4][5][7]

The Cygrid MCP Gateway sits in the tool-call path and audits, allows, rewrites or blocks every agent tool call at runtime, decided by the same graph as every other enforcement point. Every MCP tool call is authenticated through the customer identity provider, tied to the person behind the agent and checked against policy down to the tool and parameter. In the MCP Gateway, credentials are issued just in time, and every call is logged. Cygrid keeps a registry of approved MCP servers with owner, provenance and version, and pauses a server whose tools change until it is re-reviewed. Cygrid verdicts include allow, downscope, block, revoke on approval or grant just in time, and each verdict is written to an immutable decision log. Cygrid issues a scoped credential at the moment of use and lets it expire. Cygrid removes standing admin and grants elevated access on request, for a limited time.[5][8][9][10][11]

Okta, Entra ID or Google Workspace can sync users, groups and offboarding to the MCP Gateway, so access follows the person. Cygrid ingests existing security tools as feeds and does not replace them. Cygrid connectors are read-only by default, with write access only for fixes the customer approves. On approval, Cygrid revokes risky access, orphaned accounts and dormant tokens at the source, blocks unapproved MCP servers and controls which identities AI agents use. Cygrid inventories every OAuth grant, API key, service account and AI app connection, and revokes the risky ones. Cygrid works with ChatGPT, Claude, Claude agents and more, plus any agent that connects through MCP or OAuth.[5][6][8][9][12]

In a finance example, an AI assistant on Drive can read, edit and share files while every delete is blocked. When an agent asks to export 100,000 records, Cygrid blocks the call or reduces it to the 500-record limit before it reaches the app. For e-commerce, Cygrid maps staff, apps and AI agents with access in every Shopify store and flags dormant admins and over-scoped app tokens. Cygrid grants temporary staff, agencies and freelancers time-limited access and removes it automatically when the work ends.[13][14]

Cygrid audits every identity and its access, enforces customer policies on every action, and generates evidence for NIS2, DORA and the EU AI Act from one live graph. Cygrid fills in a register of ICT third parties, including OAuth apps and AI agents, automatically from the graph. Cygrid finds shadow admins whose rights come through groups and never appear in the admin list of the platform, and shows the path from user to group to role. The Cygrid gateway inspects tool calls, not content, and its logs record each action and the person behind it, never prompts. Cygrid is ISO 27001 audited, has SOC 2 Type II in progress and has passed an external penetration test. Cygrid is hosted in Frankfurt across multiple availability zones.[1][4][7][8][12][13][14]

Cygrid on the record

Sources

Cygrid full record

  1. [1]cygrid.ioCygrid · cygrid.io · undated page, accessed October 23, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]AboutCygrid · cygrid.io · undated page, accessed October 23, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]Cygrid emerges from stealthCygrid · cygrid.io · published October 22, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]Identity Enforcement for AI-Driven Enterprises | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Identity Enforcement Platform | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Least Privilege Across Your SaaS | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]Identity Intelligence Graph | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]MCP Gateway for AI Agents | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Secure AI Agent Rollout for AI Teams | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Identity Enforcement Use Cases | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Integrations: Okta, Entra ID, SaaS & AI | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  12. [12]Identity Policy Enforcement & Compliance | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  13. [13]Identity Enforcement for Fintech & NIS2/DORA | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  14. [14]Identity Enforcement for E-commerce | CygridCygrid · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A

Valence full record

  1. [1]valencesecurity.comValence · valencesecurity.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Israeli cybersecurity startup valence launches out of stealth with 7m in fundingValence · valencesecurity.com · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]SaaS Application Security Platform | ValenceValence · undated page, accessed October 29, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]Valence Reviews 2026: Details, Pricing, & FeaturesG2 · undated page, accessed October 29, 2026 · Tier C
  5. [5]The Leader in SaaS and AI Security, Built for the Agentic Era | ValenceValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]Comprehensive Microsoft 365 Security and Risk RemediationValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]SaaS Security Posture Management | ValenceValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]AI Security Posture Management (AI-SPM)Valence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) | ValenceValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Valence Connector Studio | Extend SaaS Security to Any ApplicationValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Remediate Your Slack Security Risks | ValenceValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  12. [12]GitHub Security: Manage Risks with ValenceValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  13. [13]Google Workspace Security | Protect Your SaaS EnvironmentValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A
  14. [14]Salesforce Security | Protect Your SaaS EnvironmentValence Security · undated page, accessed November 4, 2026 · Tier A

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