Meet the techie with 19 years of experience who launches cybersecurity startup to defend businesses against AI-driven automated threats

After nearly two decades in the security industry, Rajeev Raj reached a defining realisation that the world’s cybersecurity systems were fragmented, reactive, and struggling to keep pace with increasingly automated threats. Instead of accepting the status quo, he chose to challenge it.

In an exclusive interview with Startup Pedia, Rajeev Raj, Co-founder and CEO of Spharaka Networks Private Limited, shared how his 19 years of experience led him to launch an AI-native cybersecurity company designed to redefine how organisations defend themselves in a rapidly evolving digital battlefield.

A defence-inspired vision from Bengaluru

Born in Bengaluru and armed with a Bachelor of Engineering degree, Rajeev’s roots are deeply intertwined with national service and security. His father worked in the defence industry, a fact that continues to shape his entrepreneurial ambition.

“As my father is from the defence industry, I am proud to bring such a technology, a deep tech cybersecurity system from India,” Rajeev Raj told Startup Pedia.

That sense of purpose to build indigenous, world-class security technology lies at the heart of Spharaka Networks. Joining him in this mission is Cofounder & CTO Ravikumar Nalluri, a Hyderabad-based Technologist with extensive experience in digital forensics and global security services. Together, they bring both strategic depth and operational expertise to a sector dominated by global giants.

Why Spharaka? A ‘Shield’ for the Digital age

“Spharaka” is derived from Sanskrit and means “shield.” The name is symbolic of the company’s mission: to restore clarity, control, and proactive defence in a cybersecurity landscape plagued by complexity.

Hyderabad-based Spharaka Networks Private Limited is a deep-tech cybersecurity company building advanced security products not just for India, but for the world. Its core innovation lies in AuraXP™, an Agentic AI, an intelligent system that learns, reasons, and collaborates alongside human defenders.

“Our platform connects fragmented security layers, protects enterprise assets proactively, and simplifies threat management across the organisation,” Rajeev explained to Startup Pedia.

Unlike traditional security systems that operate in silos, Spharaka’s AI-native platform integrates multiple layers of security into a unified, intelligent defence system.

Spharaka AuraXP™: Detect, Investigate, Explain, Reason & Respond

At the centre of Spharaka’s offering is its flagship product Spharaka Sphere™, powered by Agentic AI Native Technology, AuraXP™.

Born from frustration with siloed tools and reactive defence models, AuraXP™ is designed to detect, investigate, explain, and respond to threats with speed and precision. But more importantly, it prioritises what matters most.

From Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) seeking unified risk visibility to SOC analysts and threat hunters looking for context-rich, role-based insights, the platform provides meaningful intelligence at every level of an organisation.

“Whether you're a lean startup, SMB or a Fortune 500 enterprise, our goal is simple,” Rajeev said. “We make cybersecurity simpler, more transparent, and radically more effective for everyone.”

This democratised yet enterprise-grade approach is what sets Spharaka apart in a crowded market.

Bootstrapped belief investing in indigenous innovation

Launching a deep-tech AI company is no small feat, especially in cybersecurity, where GPU infrastructure, advanced machines, and high-performance computing come at steep costs.

Yet, Rajeev and his team decided to bootstrap their vision.

“We pulled from our own funding to start the deeptech company,” Rajeev Raj informed Startup Pedia.

Today, Spharaka Networks has grown to a 9-member team operating from offices in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. The company has 20–25 business partners and is steadily expanding its footprint.

Revenue generation began in February, marking an early milestone in the startup’s journey.

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A Made-in-India product for the world

In a cybersecurity ecosystem heavily dominated by foreign technologies, building an indigenous alternative presents both opportunity and challenge.

“Our services are CLASS A certified, follow data community standards, and do not follow foreign tech as of now,” Rajeev Raj said. “We are providing a made-in-India product for India and abroad.”

Spharaka Networks is listed on the Government e-Marketplace (GEM) portal, certified with MSME and DPIIT, and incubated by the National Centre of Excellence. It also received validation from NASSCOM, where they incubated the startup into the deeptech category.

These validations lend institutional credibility to its technological promise.Beyond India, the startup is already serving clients in the Middle East and the United States, with ambitions to expand into Europe, Australia and New Zealand.

Why B2B is the strategic entry point?

Spharaka Networks is laser-focused on the B2B segment, a deliberate strategic choice.

“The B2B segment is our service area as it is the fastest to penetrate the market,” Rajeev told Startup Pedia. “It has an existing customer base, and they are already facing challenges,” he added.

Enterprises today grapple with complex threat landscapes, compliance pressures, and tool sprawl. By offering a unified AI-native platform, Spharaka positions itself as both a strategic and operational partner.

The company operates on two primary models:

SaaS Deployment - completely deployed in the Cloud.Pay-As-You-Go Model

Clients pay according to monthly consumption at competitive rates, with the flexibility to add services as needed.

On-Premises Deployment - A model that ensures the strongest data sovereignty 

In this version, Spharaka deploys its services in the client premises, built for more restricted & confidential environments like Defence, Research, and National Security Setups.

A hardware appliance bundled with Spharaka Software is also set to launch soon, which the founders believe will strengthen recurring revenue streams and global scalability.

The Challenge: Winning trust in a crowded market

Cybersecurity is one of the most crowded and trust-sensitive sectors globally. Established foreign vendors dominate procurement decisions, and enterprises tend to prefer well-proven technologies.

For a deep-tech Indian startup, breaking into that ecosystem requires persistence and execution.

“The challenge is to start executing, and people understand after that,” Rajeev Raj explained to Startup Pedia. “Translating a pain point to business value and articulating the value to the business partners is what we are doing,” he added.

In essence, the battle is not just technological, but perceptual. Convincing organisations to shift from established foreign tools to a new, indigenous platform requires demonstrating measurable value.

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Building India’s ‘Akashteer’ in Cybersecurity

When asked about his larger vision, Rajeev drew a powerful analogy.

Like Akashteer, the advanced air defence control and reporting system developed by DRDO and Bharat Electronics to protect Indian airspace, Rajeev wants Spharaka to become a national champion in cybersecurity.

“We want to be the Akashteer in the cybersecurity domain,” he said.

The comparison is not accidental. Just as Akashteer integrates multiple sensors and defence mechanisms into a unified system, Spharaka’s Agentic AI integrates fragmented digital defences into a cohesive shield.

This ambition extends beyond national pride. The company aims to:

• Target 2,000 partners globally using its platform

• Expand deeper into the US, the Middle East, and Europe

• Launch a robust subscription ecosystem

• Eventually pursue an IPO with a niche technology coming from Bharat

“Our goal is to go IPO with a niche technology coming from Bharat,” Rajeev told Startup Pedia.

Road ahead: Scaling with purpose

Despite being a young company with a lean team, Spharaka Networks is operating with long-term conviction. The startup is not chasing vanity metrics; it is building infrastructure-level cybersecurity capabilities.

Its AI-native approach reflects the future of digital defence, where systems don’t just detect threats but reason, contextualise, and collaborate with human teams in real time.

For Rajeev, this journey is deeply personal. It is about honouring his defence legacy, empowering Indian enterprises, and positioning India as a global cybersecurity powerhouse.

In a world where automated attacks evolve by the second, reactive security models are no longer sufficient. What organisations need is intelligence that thinks, learns, reasons and acts.

Spharaka Networks is betting that the future of cybersecurity lies in Agentic AI and that this future can be built from India, for the world.

As Rajeev Raj emphasised in his conversation with Startup Pedia, the mission is simple yet ambitious about building a sophisticated, unified cybersecurity platform that restores clarity, confidence, and control in a chaotic digital landscape.

If the startup succeeds in becoming the “Akashteer” of cybersecurity, it will not only protect enterprises but it will also mark a defining chapter in India’s deep-tech evolution.

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