‘AI platform integrations pose cybersecurity risks’: Rubrik CEO Bipul Sinha

The Hindu: How prepared is India to handle cyber attacks and what role does Rubrik play in this regard?

Bipul Sinha: It’s clear that the future is going to be all about digital services which can only be successful if people trust it. Meaning, if someone tries to call a doctor and the app isn’t working because of a cyberattack, people will lose trust. Or if a cyberattack has taken place and when you try to contact a service there’s a middle man who is spoofing user data and impersonating the provider, there’s again a loss of trust. So, building digital trust, integrity and availability of the application is critical for digital transformation in India. All Indian organisations like banks and financial institutions especially have to be prepared for cyberattacks considering the geo-political situation and potential cross-border activities. This is what Rubrik will be helping with in India.

TH: What’s your view on India’s talent pipeline in cybersecurity?

BS: The Indian market on the whole is software B2B-aligned but we’re building scale for expertise in cybersecurity. In the near future, there will be a lot of companies coming to India, and a lot of talent upskilling will happen. I believe the future is bright and India could become a hub for hiring in cybersecurity.

TH: There’s intense competition in the cybersecurity industry. What is Rubrik’s differentiating factor?

BS: If you look at our 2025 fiscal results, we grew at a very fast pace – almost 39% of growth at around $1.1 billion in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR). We also created positive cash flow for the whole year, as well as had a positive contribution margin. So, there’s tremendous progress, both in terms of the high top-line growth at scale as well as profitability. This is a direct result of us winning the cyber resilience market. We have a unique architecture and product essentially which sets us apart as the only company that brings data identity on a cyber resilience platform and cyber recovery together. 

TH: Experts are warning that AI agents could be a security nightmare. What are your thoughts and what are some of the biggest trends in cybersecurity in 2025? 

BS: With AI, nation-state and threat actors are going to accelerate the pace of cyberattacks. We, the defenders, also need to use AI to fight fire with fire. You will see tremendous adoption of AI in cybersecurity. As more LLMs and other AI platforms are broadly integrated, there are risks. So, ensuring the sanctity of the model is going to be critical. 

At the end of the day, technology will keep moving forward and you have to move with it. If you have paralysis due to risk perception and don’t adopt the technology, your competition will take the leap and you will fall behind. People are particularly worried about AI agents since they take action on their own accord, and if the action is taken by a threat actor, it can do more damage than passive software. But this happens with every new piece of technology. In the early days of the internet, people were worried about credit card security. As technology moves, safety generally catches up. 

THB: Google has announced that it will be acquiring Wiz for $32 billion. What does this deal mean to the industry and do you think M&As will be more frequent in the sector? 

BS: Definitely, I see a lot more opportunity for M&As because of the new administration and their views around such big deals. The price and the scale of the deal also demonstrates the level of scope in cybersecurity. If a cloud security firm can attract this value, you can imagine how large these markets are and how much incumbents are focused on building, creating and owning that piece of the market.