CISO Tribune

Vendor comparison · 2 companies

Knostic vs Onyx Security

Knostic discovers and secures agents, coding assistants, and their supply chain, from MCP to skills and Code to Cowork. Onyx Security sells a secure control plane for AI agents and models. CISO Tribune files both under AI model and agent security and AI governance. 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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  • Knostic
  • Onyx Security
Knostic vs Onyx Security: Products, Customers and Funding Compared
KnosticKnostic discovers and secures agents, coding assistants, and their supply chain, from MCP to skills and Code to Cowork.knostic.aiOnyx SecurityOnyx Security sells a secure control plane for AI agents and models.onyx.security
What it sells
  • Kirin[4][5][6][7][11]Runs on the endpoint inside supported agents. Denies or blocks unsafe agent actions.
  • AgentMesh[4][5][6][7][11]Rates every skill, server, and extension.
  • AI Security[1][7]Onyx provides the runtime and posture layer of the Onyx Secure AI Control Plane.
  • MCP Gateway[8]The MCP Gateway governs the agent-to-tool surface.
Categories
Headquarters
Reston, United States[3]Not stated on its pages
Founded
2023[2][7]Not stated on its pages
Ownership and funding
Privately held[5]Not stated on its pages
Named customers
Not stated on its pagesNot stated on its pages
Recent news
  • June 12, 2026Knostic was recognized in the Cloud Security Alliance's first Agentic AI Security Innovator Market Map.[10]
  • July 29, 2026Onyx Security announced a $113 million Series B funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners.[15]
  • March 12, 2026Onyx Security officially launched operations after securing $40 million in initial funding.[14]
G2 and Gartner Peer Insights
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
  • G2: Not stated on its pages
  • Gartner Peer Insights: Not stated on its pages
Who it fits
From its own pages, the company sells mainly to developers and teams that use AI coding agents and IDEs, with plans written for individual developers, growing teams, and engineering managers. Its pages describe developers and business users who install agents, extensions, MCP servers, and skills from open ecosystems. It lists an inventory export described as a register of AI systems for compliance and risk reporting. Its stated support covers macOS and Windows.From its own pages, Onyx Security sells mainly to security, governance, and AI teams that need control over AI agent adoption across the enterprise. Onyx Security describes a single platform for security, governance, and infrastructure teams. Onyx Security offers cloud, hybrid, or self-hosted options for organisations with sensitive data residency requirements. Onyx Security presents one console for AI agents and models across SaaS, cloud, endpoint, and code environments. Onyx Security names security, finance, and platform teams as the teams that share its usage, cost, and policy ledger.
Last verified
September 27, 2026October 19, 2026

Where they overlap

  • AI model and agent security is the primary category of both Knostic and Onyx Security; both are also filed under AI governance.

Where they differ, field by field

  • Onyx Security is also filed under Workforce AI usage security and Non-human identity security.
  • Knostic lists Kirin and AgentMesh. Onyx Security lists AI Security and MCP Gateway.
  • Knostic is headquartered in Reston, United States.
  • Knostic was founded in 2023.
  • Knostic is privately held.

How they differ

Knostic sells Kirin, which runs on the endpoint inside supported agents and denies unsafe agent actions, and AgentMesh, which rates every skill, server, and extension. Onyx Security sells AI Security, the runtime and posture layer of its Secure AI Control Plane, and an MCP Gateway that governs the agent-to-tool surface. Both products deal with MCP servers: AgentMesh scans them for prompt injection and supply-chain risk, while the Onyx MCP Gateway inspects and enforces policy on every tool call an agent makes to an MCP server.

Knostic describes its audience as developers and teams using AI coding agents and IDEs, and Kirin deploys as an extension for Cursor and VS Code. Onyx Security describes its audience as security, governance, and AI teams, with one console for agents and models across SaaS, cloud, endpoint, and code. Onyx Security offers five enforcement actions: alert, block, mask, steer, or ask. It also offers cloud, hybrid, or self-hosted options for organizations with sensitive data residency requirements. CISO Tribune also files Onyx Security under AI governance, Workforce AI usage security, and Non-human identity security.

Knostic is headquartered in Reston, United States, was founded in 2023, and is privately held. On June 12, 2026, Knostic was recognized in the Cloud Security Alliance's first Agentic AI Security Innovator Market Map. Onyx Security officially launched operations on March 12, 2026, after securing $40 million in initial funding. On July 29, 2026, it announced a $113 million Series B round led by Bessemer Venture Partners.

What it sells: Knostic

What Kirin does[4][5][6][7][11]
Kirin runs on the endpoint inside supported agents and sees the tools, extensions, servers, and skills actually installed and used. Kirin denies a destructive command before it executes, tells the developer why, and logs a Prevented alert for the SOC. Kirin blocks the connection to an MCP server before it is established, after AgentMesh scans and rates the server. Kirin deploys as an extension for Cursor and VS Code.
What AgentMesh does[4][5][6][7][11]
AgentMesh rates every skill, server, and extension. AgentMesh scans MCP servers for prompt injection, malicious behaviour, and supply-chain risk. AgentMesh detects prompt injection in skills, MCP servers, and extensions before install. Every paid AgentMesh plan includes Kirin IDE security.

What it sells: Onyx Security

What AI Security does[1][7]
Onyx provides the runtime and posture layer of the Onyx Secure AI Control Plane. Onyx inspects every prompt, tool call, and model response inline across browser AI, coding assistants, desktop AI agents, cloud workloads, and MCP servers. Onyx offers five enforcement actions: alert, block, mask, steer, or ask.
What MCP Gateway does[8]
The MCP Gateway governs the agent-to-tool surface. Every tool call an agent makes to an MCP server gets inspected and policy-enforced. MCP Gateway coverage spans the MCP ecosystem, including servers using dynamic client registration and popular servers like GitHub.

Questions about Knostic and Onyx Security

What do Knostic and Onyx Security sell?
Knostic sells Kirin and AgentMesh. Onyx Security sells AI Security and MCP Gateway.
Are Knostic and Onyx Security in the same category?
Yes. AI model and agent security is the primary category of both on CISO Tribune.
Where are Knostic and Onyx Security headquartered?
Knostic is headquartered in Reston, United States.
When were Knostic and Onyx Security founded?
Knostic was founded in 2023.
Who owns Knostic and Onyx Security?
Knostic is privately held.
Who are Knostic and Onyx Security sold to?
From its own pages, the company sells mainly to developers and teams that use AI coding agents and IDEs, with plans written for individual developers, growing teams, and engineering managers. From its own pages, Onyx Security sells mainly to security, governance, and AI teams that need control over AI agent adoption across the enterprise.
What have Knostic and Onyx Security announced recently?
June 12, 2026: Knostic was recognized in the Cloud Security Alliance's first Agentic AI Security Innovator Market Map. July 29, 2026: Onyx Security announced a $113 million Series B funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners.

About Knostic

Knostic discovers and secures agents, coding assistants, and their supply chain, from MCP to skills and Code to Cowork. Knostic enforces rules by checking every action against policy before it runs, so allowed actions proceed and risky ones are blocked or sent to a human. Knostic applies least privilege to what agents do, watches every action as it happens, and blocks the unsafe ones before they execute.[1][6]

Kirin is the Knostic product that runs on the endpoint inside supported agents. Kirin sees the tools, extensions, servers, and skills actually installed and used. In one example, Kirin denies a destructive command before it executes, tells the developer why, and logs a Prevented alert for the SOC. AgentMesh rates every skill, server, and extension. Every paid AgentMesh plan includes Kirin IDE security.[4][6][11]

Knostic discovers every agent, model, and AI tool running across endpoints, attributes each to people and teams, and brings them under one policy. Knostic finds agents, extensions, MCP servers, and skills where they run, on the endpoint, rather than inferring from network logs. Discovery is passive, and policy can run in Monitor mode before anything is enforced. Discovered components are rated using AgentMesh verdicts and policy posture. Knostic maps which teams and individuals use which tools and what they can reach.[4][6]

Knostic describes one control plane for all agents, models, and AI tools. Knostic unifies and centrally governs agentic security policies and configurations. Teams can scope what agents may read, write, run, connect to, and install, per team. Knostic describes its guardrails for SaaS, in-house, coding, and Cowork agents.[1][6]

For prompt injection, Kirin catches the injection and blocks the action it would have caused. Kirin inspects what an agent is about to do, not just what it was told. Knostic scans prompts, retrieved context, and tool responses for injection and malicious instructions. Knostic catches credentials in prompts and outputs and blocks or redacts them, in Monitor or Enforce. Teams choose block, downgrade, route to a human, or log per rule and per team. For code, Knostic states that agents model threats before they code, follow secure coding rules, and have every package checked.[1][11]

Knostic keeps an up-to-date list of allowed MCP servers, with every connection validated in real time. Knostic flags deviations from policy or misconfigurations as they occur. AgentMesh continuously rescans the ecosystem, and Knostic research feeds new detections. Decision logs and runtime monitoring provide evidence for audits, incident response, and policy enforcement.[6]

Kirin supports Claude Code CLI, Claude Desktop and Cowork, Cursor, Windsurf, and VS Code + GitHub Copilot, on macOS and Windows, and Linux is in beta. Managers provision the console, push the endpoint client to the endpoints, directly or via an existing MDM, and start in Monitor mode. For Cursor and VS Code, Kirin deploys as an extension and requires the client for shadow AI visibility.

Kirin has three tiers, from individual developers to enterprise-wide rollouts. Knostic provides a package with SOC 2, pen test reports, and a data flow diagram in its trust center. Knostic Inc. is a company incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware.[4][8][9]

Knostic on the record

Sources

Knostic full record

  1. [1]Knostic - The control plane for agentic AI on the endpointKnostic · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]Ending llm oversharing we raised 11 million to secure enterprise aiKnostic · knostic.ai · undated page, accessed September 27, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]Rsac 2025 innovation sandbox knostic reshaping the access control paradigm for enterprise ai securitySecurity Boulevard · securityboulevard.com · published April 25, 2025 · Tier B
  4. [4]Shadow AI Discovery & Governance - KnosticKnostic · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]Pricing - KnosticKnostic · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]AI Agent Security - KnosticKnostic · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]MCP Security Posture Management - KnosticKnostic · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]Terms of Service - KnosticKnostic · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]Knostic Knostic Trust Center | Powered by SafeBaseKnostic · undated page, accessed October 26, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Knostic Featured Across Three Categories in CSA's Agentic AI Security Innovator Market MapKnostic · published June 12, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Prompt Injection Defense - KnosticKnostic · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A

Onyx Security full record

  1. [1]onyx.securityOnyx Security · onyx.security · undated page, accessed October 19, 2026 · Tier A
  2. [2]The Secure AI Control Plane for the Agentic Era | OnyxOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  3. [3]About Onyx | The Team Behind the AI Control PlaneOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  4. [4]One Platform to Discover and Control Every AI Agent | OnyxOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  5. [5]AI Observability – Discover Every Agent & Session | OnyxOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  6. [6]AI Agent Security | Block Prompt Injection in Real TimeOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  7. [7]AI Governance Platform Built for the EU AI Act | OnyxOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  8. [8]AI Orchestration – Governed Routing & Control | OnyxOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  9. [9]AI ROI Platform – Prove Value & Control Costs | OnyxOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  10. [10]Secure Claude Enterprise with Onyx | Anthropic IntegrationOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  11. [11]Secure ChatGPT Enterprise with Onyx | OpenAI IntegrationOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  12. [12]Secure Amazon Bedrock Agents | Onyx IntegrationOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  13. [13]Copilot Studio Security – Discover, Govern & Control | OnyxOnyx Security · undated page, accessed November 10, 2026 · Tier A
  14. [14]Israeli cyber firm Onyx Security launches operations with $40 million funding round | ReutersReuters · published March 12, 2026 · Tier B
  15. [15]Onyx Security Raises $113M Series B to Control Advanced AI, Quadrupling Revenue since Stealth Launch Four Months AgoBusiness Wire · published July 29, 2026 · Tier A

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