Cytix, a Manchester cybersecurity company, raised a $7m Series A led by Northern Gritstone, a UK investor in science and technology start-ups in the North of England. The round was announced on 12 August 2026.
Existing investors Auriga Cyber Ventures and NPIF II, managed by PXN Ventures and part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II, also took part, according to Cytix and Tech.eu. No valuation was disclosed.
Cytix described itself as a Manchester company. The announcement came with the general release of the product on the same day.
“Software is changing. AI-assisted development means change now happens at machine speed.”Ben Armstrong, CEO, Cytix
What Cytix does
Cytix sells a change risk platform that monitors every software change a business makes, analyses and validates the risk of each, and documents how that risk was handled for regulators. It sits between the software development lifecycle and the risk, security and compliance teams.
Chief executive Ben Armstrong said that software is changing and that AI-assisted development means change now happens at machine speed. He told Tech.eu that existing tools can say what vulnerabilities a company has but cannot say what the risk is.
Cytix said the platform became generally available on 12 August 2026, the day of the funding announcement.
Customers and partners
Cytix says it powers the continuous testing programmes of KPMG and NCC Group. Customers can buy directly or through managed service partnerships with the two firms. The company targets enterprises and regulated businesses where change governance is a legal obligation.
The company also published research it commissioned, a survey of 250 UK IT security leaders at companies with 1,000 or more employees, run from 28 July to 3 August 2026. It found that 62% say software change risk is shifting from a latent to an immediate problem, and only 38% strongly agree their organisation is ready for the volume of AI-generated code.
Who invested
Duncan Johnson, chief executive of Northern Gritstone, said Cytix's platform aims to help enterprises take a realistic approach, recognising where change carries the most risk.
Sarah Isal, a principal investor at Auriga Cyber Ventures, said the team identified early that software change would become a critical cybersecurity challenge. Sue Barnard, a senior investment manager at the British Business Bank, called Cytix a great example of the ambitious technology businesses emerging from the North of England.
Existing investors have backed Cytix since its early days and increased their commitment, the company said.
What the money is for
The funds will speed the rollout of the change risk platform and help Cytix reach enterprise and regulated customers. The sources did not give a headcount, details of earlier rounds or the names of other founders beyond Armstrong.
Company website: cytix.io