Snyk Ltd., a Boston startup that helps developers write more hacker-resistant code, today divulged that it has raised $200 million at a valuation exceeding $2.6 billion. 

The investment follows a string of major funding rounds in both the cybersecurity and developer productivity segments. Snyk, which stands at the intersection of the two areas, has found itself in a strong position to seize upon investor interest. 

The startup provides a tool that is used by about 1.5 million developers worldwide to scan their code for vulnerable open-source components. Most enterprise applications incorporate open-source components and consequently are vulnerable to any security exploits that may be lurking in those files. Snyk’s tool flags exploits and gives developers tips on how to fix them.

A big part of Snyk’s popularity is that it’s designed to be easy to use. Developers can plug the tool into the existing code editors in which they write their applications and receive alerts about security issues directly inside the interface.

The vulnerability alerts that Snyk generates are drawn from an internal database of software security flaws. That database, which is maintained by a team of researchers headed by one of the startup’s co-founders, is a central element of how Snyk sets itself apart from rivals. The  startup claims to track nearly four times as many vulnerabilities as the closest commercial alternative and says that, in some cases, exploits are captured by its database sooner than they appear on public vulnerability lists.

Snyk makes money by selling commercial versions of its tool. One of the startup’s commercial products is designed to uncover exploits in container and Kubernetes applications, while another focuses on spotting security issues stemming from infrastructure configuration errors.

Even with an existing installed base of about 1.5 million developers, Snyk’s leadership still sees plenty of room to grow. “There’s 28 million developers in the world. What we want is every one of those 28 million to be using our product,” Snyk Chief Executive Officer Peter McKay (pictured) said  in a January appearance (below) on SiliconANGLE Media’s theCUBE. “Whether it’s free or paid, I want Snyk used in every application development lifecycle.”

Snyk’s paid products seem to be faring well. The startup disclosed today that it has increased annual recurring revenues by more than 270% over the past year thanks to strong customer adoption. Paying users include MongoDB Inc., Auth0 Inc. and Segment Inc., among others.

One likely factor behind Snyk’s enterprise traction is that, in addition to improving cybersecurity, its tool effectively functions as a developer productivity tool. Any solution can assist engineers with spotting code issues during development not only improves security, but also reduces how many person-hours must be invested in rewriting faulty code after it’s released. Moreover, Snyk’s tool can detect cases when a company uses an open-source component in violation of its license, another time-saver with the potential to reduce the need for revisions down the road.

Snyk has raised $450 million from investors to date. The latest $200 million round announced today was led by Addition Capital. 

Photo: SiliconANGLE