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Itamar Golan

Itamar Golan is the chief executive and co-founder of Prompt Security, a company focused on securing artificial intelligence systems, and is known in the New York tech scene for his work applying machine learning techniques to cybersecurity problems [1]. His path into the field began with an early aptitude for mathematics, which led to his recruitment at age eighteen into the Israel Defense Forces' Unit 8200, where by age twenty he had risen to lead a team of more than one hundred people [3]. That military and technical background shaped his later career at the intersection of artificial intelligence and security, culminating in his decision to found Prompt Security to address emerging security risks tied to AI adoption [3].

Golan describes himself as driven by competition, stating that had he not entered cybersecurity he might have pursued Formula 1 racing, and he identifies head-to-head product evaluations against rival vendors as the most exciting moments in running his company [4]. He names competitors such as Lasso, Aim, Harmonic, and Protect as the companies Prompt Security frequently faces in these competitive bake-offs, and he frames winning these evaluations as a central measure of success and motivation for his team [4].

Beyond his operating role, Golan has discussed his perspective on AI security topics in a range of public conversations, including appearances addressing leadership and entrepreneurial lessons from launching Prompt Security [6], the practical integration of application security and AI security through a partnership between Checkmarx and Prompt Security [7], and broader questions of security and privacy in AI systems [8]. He also participates in discussions on marketing and communication strategy in the AI and security space, including a conversation on cutting through industry noise [5]. Golan is further associated with PromptCast, a podcast series billed as covering the voice of AI and security, which has been distributed across platforms including Spotify and Apple Podcasts [9][10][11].

Insights & ideas

Itamar Golan is driven by a strong competitive instinct, describing his most exciting moments as CEO as head-to-head product evaluations against rival vendors such as Lasso, Aim, Harmonic, and Protect, and the satisfaction of winning those bake-offs [1]. He traces this ambition to his early career in Israel's 8200 intelligence unit, where he led over 100 people by age 20, an experience he credits with teaching him both technical skills and the composure to operate under pressure [2]. Reflecting on entrepreneurship, he argues that raw intelligence is largely trivial among founders and that the decisive differentiator is an outsized level of persistence, hunger, and ambition, a view he now shares when advising VCs on evaluating entrepreneurs [2]. He also describes his career as sitting at the intersection of AI and security, explaining that he founded Prompt Security specifically because he wanted to combine his long-standing passion for data science and machine learning with his practical expertise in building and selling security products [2].

Experience

  1. General Manager, Prompt Security
    SentinelOneSep 2025 to Present
  2. CEO & Co-Founder
    Prompt SecuritySep 2023 to Present
  3. Official Member
    Forbes Technology CouncilDec 2024 to Present
  4. Head of Data Science & ML Engineering
    Orca SecuritySep 2021 to Aug 2023
  5. Data Science Team Leader (Founding Team)
    Emporus TechnologiesJan 2020 to Oct 2021
  6. Senior Data Scientist
    Check Point Software Technologies, Ltd.Jun 2018 to Jan 2020
  7. Data Scientist
    TechSeeApr 2017 to Jun 2018
  8. Group Manager - Intelligence Data Mining Officer
    Israeli Intelligence ServiceApr 2011 to Sep 2015

Education

Media & appearances

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