Cato Networks is the pioneer of single-vendor SASE, founded in 2015 by Shlomo Kramer, co-founder of Check Point and Imperva. The company built the first purpose-designed SASE platform from the ground up, predating Gartner’s formal SASE definition in 2019. Cato has raised over $1.16 billion at a $4.8 billion valuation.
Platform Overview
The Cato SASE Cloud Platform converges networking and security in a single cloud-native architecture.
Cato SD-WAN provides software-defined wide area networking that connects physical locations, cloud data centers, and remote users. The platform replaces legacy MPLS with an SLA-backed global private backbone.
Cato SSE 360 delivers cloud-native security services based on the Single Pass Cloud Engine (SPACE) architecture. All traffic is inspected once for all security functions, reducing latency and complexity.
Security capabilities include secure web gateway with threat prevention, zero trust network access for application-level access control, cloud access security broker for SaaS visibility and control, data loss prevention for sensitive data protection, and firewall as a service for network segmentation.
SASE Pioneer
Cato claims credit as the pioneer and category creator of SASE. Unlike competitors who assembled SASE through acquisitions and integrations, Cato built its platform from the ground up for convergence.
The company has achieved Gartner Magic Quadrant Leader status for SASE in both 2024 and 2025, after debuting as a Challenger in the inaugural 2023 quadrant.
Key Customers
Cato serves over 3,500 enterprise customers including Carlsberg Group, Swissport, Elkjop, O-I Glass, and Darling Ingredients. Customers span finance, healthcare, manufacturing, and retail industries.
Recent Developments
In June 2025, Cato raised $359 million in Series G funding at a $4.8 billion valuation, followed by a $50 million extension in September 2025. ARR crossed $300 million with 46% year-over-year growth.
In January 2026, Cato completed its first acquisition, purchasing Aim Security for $350 million to add AI security capabilities. CEO Shlomo Kramer was named 2024 Security Executive of the Year by SC Media.
Leadership
Co-founder Shlomo Kramer serves as CEO. Often called the “godfather of Israeli cybersecurity,” Kramer co-founded Check Point in 1993 and Imperva in 2002. Co-founder Gur Shatz previously co-founded Incapsula and serves on the board.