Nozomi Unveils Private AI to Defend Critical Infrastructure

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – January 15, 2026 – By Charles Rivera

Nozomi Networks, a prominent leader in securing industrial control systems, today announced the launch of Vantage IQ, a new platform it bills as the world's first private, company-trained AI assistant for Operational Technology (OT) and Internet of Things (IoT) security teams. The solution enters a market grappling with the twin crises of unprecedented cyberattacks on critical infrastructure and a severe shortage of specialized defenders.

Vantage IQ is designed to function as an expert teammate for security analysts and a strategic advisor for executives. By leveraging a private Large Language Model (LLM) trained on an organization's unique operational environment, the platform aims to deliver hyper-relevant, secure, and actionable intelligence, moving beyond the capabilities of generic, public AI models.

A New Front in Cyber Defense: Private AI

The core innovation of Vantage IQ lies in its private, context-aware architecture. Unlike commercial AI assistants that draw from vast, public datasets, Vantage IQ’s intelligence is built exclusively from an organization's internal data, including its specific asset inventory, network communication patterns, vulnerabilities, and threat intelligence. This approach ensures that the guidance provided is not only tailored but also secure, mitigating the data privacy and intellectual property risks associated with feeding sensitive information into external AI models.

"The era of generic, one-size-fits-all AI is over," said Andrea Carcano, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Nozomi Networks, in the company's announcement. The goal is to provide a tool that understands the intricate and often delicate nature of OT environments—from power grids and manufacturing plants to water treatment facilities.

This specialization allows the AI assistant to provide nuanced insights that a general-purpose model could not. For instance, it can help an analyst understand the potential impact of a specific vulnerability on a particular piece of machinery within their own facility, rather than providing a generic risk score. This level of contextual understanding is critical in OT environments, where uptime is paramount and any changes can have significant physical consequences.

Addressing the Twin Crises of Threats and Talent

The launch of Vantage IQ comes at a critical juncture for industrial sectors. Cyberattacks targeting critical infrastructure have escalated in both frequency and sophistication. Research from industry sources highlights the immense financial risk, with one 2025 report from Dragos and Marsh McLennan estimating that worst-case OT cyber incidents could inflict global costs of up to $172.4 billion in a single year, primarily from business interruption.

Compounding this threat is a well-documented labor crisis in cybersecurity. Organizations worldwide are struggling to recruit and retain personnel with the specialized skills needed to defend complex OT and IoT systems. This skills gap leaves many critical facilities vulnerable, as understaffed security teams are overwhelmed by a flood of alerts and rapidly evolving adversary tactics.

Nozomi Networks is positioning Vantage IQ as a direct answer to this challenge. "The labor crisis in cybersecurity is real – and growing," Carcano stated. "With skilled resources a scarce commodity and the threat landscape accelerating, Vantage IQ™ is the force multiplier that turns good analysts into great defenders." By automating data correlation, guiding investigations, and simplifying complex information, the AI assistant is intended to augment existing teams, allowing them to operate more efficiently and effectively.

The Competitive Landscape of AI-Powered Security

Nozomi Networks is not the only company deploying AI to secure industrial environments. The OT security market is a competitive space where AI and machine learning have become key differentiators. Competitors like Dragos, Claroty, and Forescout have all integrated advanced AI capabilities into their platforms.

Dragos, for example, emphasizes an "Analyst-First Approach" to its AI, focusing on automation and investigation recommendations built upon its deep OT threat intelligence. Claroty utilizes AI within its Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) Library for enhanced asset visibility and vulnerability management, while Forescout applies AI across its platform for asset classification and threat intelligence, even integrating with broader tools like Microsoft Copilot for Security.

However, Nozomi Networks' claim of a "world's first" hinges on the specific combination of a private, company-trained AI assistant that uses a context-aware LLM for conversational interaction. This positions Vantage IQ less as a background analytics engine and more as an interactive partner for security personnel. The ability to ask natural language questions about a specific network and receive tailored, secure answers is the key distinction the company is emphasizing in a crowded market.

Empowering Analysts and Executives Alike

The platform is designed to serve two distinct but interconnected audiences: the security operations center (SOC) analyst on the front lines and the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) in the boardroom.

For analysts, Vantage IQ is integrated directly into the user interface to provide AI-guided triage, investigation, and response. When an alert appears, the assistant can offer immediate context, suggest investigative steps specific to the affected assets, and recommend remediation actions. This helps analysts move from simply analyzing data to taking decisive action, reducing response times and minimizing the potential impact of an attack.

For CISOs and other leaders, the platform offers a way to extract high-level, strategic insights through natural conversation. A CISO could theoretically ask, "What is the current risk posture of our North American manufacturing sites?" and receive a concise, board-ready summary in plain language, eliminating the need for technical translation. This capability aims to bridge the persistent communication gap between technical security risk and broader business impact, enabling better-informed strategic decisions.

The ultimate test for Vantage IQ will be its real-world performance in high-stakes environments. As threat actors continue to innovate, the ability for AI to effectively augment human expertise will be crucial. By focusing on a private, context-aware model, Nozomi Networks is making a strategic bet that tailored intelligence, rather than generalized knowledge, is the key to defending the world's most critical systems.