What Fraunhofer AISEC does

Fraunhofer AISEC (Fraunhofer-Institut für Angewandte und Integrierte Sicherheit) is a constituent applied-research institute of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, headquartered in Garching bei München with additional sites in Berlin and Weiden in der Oberpfalz. Founded in 1990 and operating with 151 employees, it focuses on applied cybersecurity across hardware security, software security, cryptography, AI security, and quantum cybersecurity. The institute runs ten IT security laboratories spanning Automotive and Hardware Security, Industry 4.0 and IoT, and Software, Cloud and Smart Sensor Security, with the Hardware Security Lab Common Criteria certified up to EAL7. Customer segments include manufacturing and industrial companies (automotive, machinery, aerospace, medical devices), public institutions and government, the semiconductor industry, and KRITIS operators facing EU regulatory obligations.

The institute's portfolio is research-driven rather than commercially packaged, consisting of open-source security analysis tools (Codyze, Code Property Graph, IntelliSecTest), compliance and risk-assessment tools (Confirmate, QuBA, QuBA-libre, MoRA), supply-chain integrity components (CMC, kotlin-csaf), the GyroidOS secure execution platform, a Post-Quantum Cryptography Competence Center, and the jointly developed RISC-V Secure Element hardware root-of-trust. Service offerings span commissioned research, technology development, security analyses and penetration testing, feasibility studies, trainings, and IT security consulting. Marketing channels emphasize thought leadership (Cybersecurity Blog, GitHub, YouTube, LinkedIn, newsletter) and industry events (it-sa trade fair, PQC-Update conference, FIRST by FMD).

Revenue is generated through two streams: industrial contract research with enterprise and public-sector clients, and publicly funded research from BMBF and EU programs (including the EU Chips Act). As a legally non-autonomous entity of Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft — a registered nonprofit — the institute has no traditional venture capital or private equity ownership. Strategic positioning centers on European digital sovereignty, with active participation in OpenHW Foundation, OpenTitan Coalition, Semiconductor-X consortium, APECS (EU Chips Act pilot line), and the Research Fab Microelectronics Germany, reflecting an explicit shift from pure cybersecurity services toward semiconductor and open-source hardware trust.

Name

Fraunhofer AISEC

Legal name

Fraunhofer-Institut für Angewandte und Integrierte Sicherheit AISEC

Website

https://aisec.fraunhofer.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1990

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Fraunhofer AISEC is a German applied cybersecurity research institute within Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, serving manufacturers, public institutions, semiconductor firms, and KRITIS operators with hardware security labs, open-source security tools, CRA/NIS-2 compliance software, and PQC migration consulting.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cybersecurity Research & Consulting

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Computer Systems Design Services (541512), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169), Other Computer Related Services (541519)

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

IT Risk Management (ITRM) (HDADAIAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Regulatory Readiness & Audit Automation (e.g., EU AI Act, NIST AI RMF, ISO/IEC 42001) (HDAAAMAE), Cybersecurity & Identity Consulting (BPAHAEAG), Application Security & Secure Software (DevSecOps) (EDAOAIAK)

Keywords

• Applied cybersecurity research
• Hardware security testing
• Post-quantum cryptography
• IT security consulting
• Security compliance tools

Headquarters

HQ city

Garching bei München

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Operations, Others

Revenue model

1. Industrial Contract Research: Fraunhofer AISEC generates revenue through commissioned research from industry partners, technology development projects, and security testing services for companies and public institutions.
2. Publicly Funded Research: As part of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, the institute receives government funding for research projects, particularly from BMBF (Federal Ministry of Education and Research) and EU programs.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels11 records

Core offering

Fraunhofer AISEC is an applied cybersecurity research institute that conducts commissioned research, develops proprietary security analysis and compliance tools (e.g., Codyze, Confirmate, GyroidOS), performs hardware security evaluations up to EAL7 in a Common Criteria-certified laboratory, and provides consulting on EU regulatory compliance (NIS-2, Cyber Resilience Act) and post-quantum cryptography migration for industrial and public-sector clients.

Product overview

Fraunhofer AISEC is a research institute (part of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft) focused on applied and integrated cybersecurity. Rather than a single commercial product, its portfolio consists of a layered suite of research-driven cybersecurity tools, platforms, and services. The core offerings include: security analysis tools (Codyze, Code Property Graph, IntelliSecTest) for static and AI-based source code vulnerability detection; compliance and risk management tools (Confirmate, QuBA, MoRA, QuBA-libre) for CRA and security concept support; open-source security components (CMC, kotlin-csaf) for supply chain verification and CSAF integration; the secure platform GyroidOS for container isolation and certification; a CC-certified Hardware Security Lab offering hardware penetration testing up to EAL7; a PQC Competence Center providing quantum-resistant cryptography migration consulting; a Learning Laboratory (Lernlabor) with training seminars and the 'Charlie und die Quantenfabrik' serious game; and a RISC-V Secure Element (hardware root of trust) developed in partnership with other Fraunhofer institutes. Fraunhofer AISEC also publishes an expert Cybersecurity Blog and operates GitHub repositories for its open-source tools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Codyze Open-source static source code analysis tool that checks security properties of program code and identifies vulnerabilities using AI-based procedures to automatically search for patterns representing potential weaknesses.
• Confirmate Software solution for automated Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) compliance checking of software components, combining static code analysis with automated compliance evaluation to identify vulnerabilities and determine individual remediation needs. First demonstrated at it-sa 2024.
• IntelliSecTest Security testing tool using AI-based procedures to automatically search for patterns in source code that may represent potential vulnerabilities.

Quantifiable outcome

• Security evaluations up to EAL7 level for hardware components
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability13 records

Feature11 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and moderate.

• lowRISC C.I.C.coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Fraunhofer AISEC collaborates with lowRISC on the OpenTitan Coalition, serving as the central partner for security testing and independently evaluating the physical resilience of the world's first open-source hardware root of trust.
• GooglecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Google and lowRISC to investigate the hardware security of the OpenTitan chip (OpenTitan Silicon Root of Trust).
• Semiconductor-X ConsortiummajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFraunhofer AISEC and Fraunhofer IOSB joined the Semiconductor-X consortium as cybersecurity partners, developing a roadmap for secure data spaces.
• OpenHW FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFraunhofer AISEC joined the OpenHW Foundation to drive open, trusted, and highly secure hardware platforms, strengthening a central building block for digital sovereignty in Europe.
• Fraunhofer IIScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on RISC-V-based Secure Element development and OpenTitan-based security solutions. Fraunhofer IIS provides chip design expertise.
• Fraunhofer EMFTcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on RISC-V-based Secure Element and trusted electronics solutions. Fraunhofer EMFT contributes electronic microsystems expertise.
• VDE (Informationstechnische Gesellschaft ITG)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerCoordinated through VDE-Fachgruppe 'Vertrauenswürdige Elektronik' to bundle and sustain work on trusted electronics.
• BayQS (Bayerisches Kompetenzzentrum Quanten Security and Data Science)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerBayQS develops foundational concepts, solutions, and prototypes in quantum computing with focus on secure QC programming and platforms, robust QC, and QC-supported (hybrid) optimization.
• Munich Quantum Valley (MQV)moderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerMQV promotes quantum science and technologies in Bavaria, building competitive quantum computers and strengthening knowledge transfer between research and industry.
• Fraunhofer Competence Network Quantum ComputingmoderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational Fraunhofer network pursuing joint goals in quantum computing research and development across regional competence centers.
• Trusted Electronic Bayern (TrEB)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCenter developing tailored technology and system solutions for reliable and trusted electronics with partners from various industries.
• Bayerisches Chip-Design-Center (BCDC)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerProvides companies, especially startups and SMEs, facilitated access to chip design and supply chains in collaboration with Fraunhofer AISEC, EMFT, IIS, and Bavarian universities.
• VelektronikmoderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerNetworking platform for trusted electronics creating interface between companies and research institutions from Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft and Leibniz-Gemeinschaft.
• APECS (EU Chips Act)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPilot line under EU Chips Act to drive chiplet innovation and increase semiconductor research and manufacturing capacity in Europe. Fraunhofer AISEC develops security features.
• SICK AGmoderateStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with SICK AG to develop and implement the QuBA questionnaire-based risk assessment method for Cyber Resilience Act compliance.
• Research Fab Microelectronics Germany (FMD)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration through FMD for semiconductor research and manufacturing capacity in Europe, including the FIRST conference organization.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Thales: Global cybersecurity and defense group with hardware security modules, cryptography consulting, and compliance services. Comparable as a broad incumbent with overlapping cryptography and cybersecurity consulting capabilities, but operates at much larger scale and across many verticals.
• NXP Semiconductors: Global semiconductor company with strong secure element and hardware root-of-trust portfolio. Comparable to AISEC's RISC-V Secure Element and trusted electronics research, but at vastly larger scale and as a commercial product company.
• Infineon Technologies: German semiconductor leader in hardware security (TPMs, secure elements, OPTIGA family). Operates adjacent to AISEC's trusted electronics domain and as a Munich-area peer, but is a commercial product company rather than a research institute.
• TÜV SÜD: Large German certification and testing conglomerate with cybersecurity and industrial security testing practices. Comparable as a broader German-based security certification/consulting incumbent, but operates across many industries rather than specializing in applied cybersecurity research.

Direct peers

• SGS Brightsight: Netherlands-based security evaluation lab offering CC, EMVCo, and payment security certifications with strong hardware security testing. Directly comparable to AISEC's CC-certified lab offering security evaluations up to EAL7.
• Trail of Bits: US-based applied cybersecurity research consultancy building security tools (Slither, Echidna, Manticore) and conducting audits for blockchain, cryptography, and software systems. Directly comparable to AISEC's mix of research-led tooling and consulting services.
• Quarkslab: French cybersecurity research firm providing binary analysis, reverse engineering, and security consulting, including open-source tools (e.g., BinaryNinja, Triton). Comparable to AISEC's code analysis tooling (Codyze, Code Property Graph) and applied security research.
• Riscure: Dutch security lab specializing in hardware security evaluation, side-channel analysis, and Common Criteria certifications for embedded systems. Most direct comparable to Fraunhofer AISEC's CC-certified Hardware Security Lab and side-channel/fault-injection testing capabilities.
• CryptoExperts: French cryptography consulting firm specializing in cryptographic implementations, post-quantum migration, and security audits. Closely comparable to AISEC's PQC Competence Center and applied cryptography research.

Regional players

• Bundesamt für Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik (BSI): German federal cybersecurity agency that defines certification frameworks (BSI standards, IT-Grundschutz) and oversees approvals. Adjacent comparable as the regulatory anchor whose standards (and NIS-2, CRA frameworks) drive much of AISEC's compliance consulting demand.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• GitHubgithub.com/Fraunhofer-AISEC
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/FraunhoferAISEC
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fraunhofer-aisec
• Instagraminstagram.com/fraunhoferaisec

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Fraunhofer AISEC