Cape, a pioneering privacy-first mobile carrier, has raised $61M in financing rounds led by A* and Andreessen Horowitz. XYZ Ventures, ex/ante, Costanoa Ventures, Point72 Ventures, Forward Deployed VC, and Karman Ventures also participated in the financing. Cape will use the capital to build a nationwide mobile network that provides premium wireless coverage which, unlike traditional carriers, masks personal identifying information like names, numbers, and locations.
“Telecom is one of the largest and most antiquated industries on the planet,” said Kevin Hartz, General Partner of A*. “Cape’s privacy-first architecture meets a growing need in the market for secure communications across consumers, businesses, and government.”
The financing announcement comes as top U.S. officials raise the alarm on lax cybersecurity by the major telecommunications carriers, which leave them vulnerable to compromise by foreign actors. Hackers can use telecommunications networks to collect personal information, pinpoint users’ locations, and plant spyware, jeopardizing freedom of the press, human rights, and national security. Russia’s use of cellular networks to hack NATO officials and target Ukrainian troops has shown the relevance of these vulnerabilities to modern conflict.
Cape’s founder and CEO, John Doyle, first recognized the weaknesses of cellular networks as head of tech giant Palantir’s national security business. He saw that the threat applies not only to government organizations but also to every person who uses a smartphone. Founded in 2022, Cape partners with leading public, private, and academic research institutions to create a robust cellular network that protects users from present-day cybersecurity threats.
“These are not only life and death questions for our nation’s defenders, but are also increasingly on the minds of everyday people, whose phones are with them through nearly every moment of their day,” said John Doyle, Cape CEO. “We are tackling an enormous set of problems that exist due to the rise of smartphones and mobile networks as a primary avenue to accessing the Internet. We can’t leak what we don’t have. That’s privacy by design, and it’s how we enable connection without compromise.”