Confidential computing startup Edgeless Systems GmbH today announced a new solution designed to enhance the security of artificial intelligence applications by offering confidential AI capabilities that enable the sharing of sensitive data within AI services.

Called Continuum, the new service has been designed to protect user data within AI services by encrypting data. Doing so means that AI service providers and the underlying cloud infrastructure only ever see encrypted data that cannot be stolen or intercepted.

Edgeless Systems argues that since the release of OpenAI’s ChatGPT, generative AI has been transformative across industries and has found its way into many productivity-boosting products. However, the company claims that users such as enterprises, public sector entities and consumers have been reluctant to use AI services with sensitive data on concerns about data leaks and the potential for AI models to be further trained on their input data.

That’s where Continuum steps in. It offers cloud-based “confidential AI” services that address sensitive data concerns. The service ensures that user requests, or prompts, and the corresponding replies remain encrypted throughout within a given AI service, making plain-text data inaccessible to both the AI service provider and the underlying cloud infrastructure.

The service is also designed to protect the highly valuable weights of AI models in the same manner. To do so, Continuum leverages the confidential computing capabilities of Nvidia Corp.’s H100 GPUs along with cryptography and sandboxing technology to allow AI service providers to update models and code freely without compromising security.

Continuum is not solely focused on the end user, as it says AI service providers benefit from its straightforward integration into their existing software stacks, with protection for their AI models and intellectual property. Users of AI services gain from Continuum’s assurance of compliance and privacy, addressing concerns over data security and unauthorized use in future AI training.

“Continuum will significantly influence the generative AI market, allowing a wider range of enterprises, particularly those in regulated sectors, to confidently utilize offerings like chatbots,” said Chief Executive Felix Schuster (pictured, right, with co-founder Thomas Tendyck). “This product embodies our mission to enable the use of cloud services without compromising on data security or compliance.”

Edgeless Systems is a venture capital-backed startup, having raised $6.72 million, according to Tracxn, including a round of $5 million in March 2023. Investors include SquareOne Holdings Inc., Inventures Private Ltd., Acequia Capital Management LLC, Venture Creator GmbH and SIX Group AG.

Photo: Edgeless Systems