Cylentium’s pitch is simple. Attackers cannot breach what they cannot see. Founded in 2019, the Seattle-based cybersecurity company is selling a software platform designed to make networks and endpoints disappear. Its core claim is operating at the data-link layer, known as Layer 2 or Level 0, a foundational network tier where conventional security tools often do not reach [Cylentium, retrieved 2024]. The goal is to cloak IP addresses and assets before a scan even begins.
The Layer 2 Wedge
Most enterprise security stacks focus on higher network layers, building walls and monitoring traffic. Cylentium’s bet is that this is a losing game. By working at Layer 2, the company says its technology can make devices and networks fundamentally undiscoverable to external probes, a concept it markets as ‘Cyber Invisibility’ [Cylentium, retrieved 2024]. The platform bundles this with peer-to-peer protection, military-grade encryption, and zero-trust access controls into what it calls its patented Bubble Cybersecurity Technology. It is a software-only, hardware-agnostic system, claiming compatibility across a wide range of operating systems and hardware from Windows and Linux to Cisco and Nvidia [Calgary Economic Development, 2025]. The ambition is to sell the same core invisibility to a spectrum of buyers: governments, critical infrastructure operators, corporations, banks, and even home consumers protecting smart devices [EIN Presswire, November 2021].
A Pedigree of Predecessor Tech
The technological lineage traces back to Cranite Systems, a company whose zero-trust, wireless security concepts informed Cylentium’s development. Dr. Dennis Volpano, Cranite’s co-founder and CTO, is an inventor on patents assigned to that firm [Justia Patents Search, retrieved 2026]. Cylentium’s own leadership includes co-founders with deep, if eclectic, backgrounds. CEO Wayne Ronhaar’s public record shows prior senior roles at Microsoft, PricewaterhouseCoopers, and IBM, alongside experience in the energy and financial sectors [LinkedIn, retrieved 2024]. CTO Rob Langhorne is identified as an original developer of the underlying Wireless Wall and Cylentium technologies [Marketing Instytucji Naukowych i Badawczych, December 2021]. The company asserts its core cyber-invisibility technology was developed for the U.S. military and matured over 15 years in high-security government applications [ZoomInfo, August 2021]. This pedigree is a key part of its narrative to enterprise buyers.
The following table outlines the known leadership and their associated technological roles.
| Name | Role | Key Background / Association |
|---|---|---|
| Wayne Ronhaar | Co-Founder, CEO | Former senior roles at Microsoft, PwC, IBM; identified as an original developer of the Zero Identity concept [LinkedIn, retrieved 2024] [IDCrawl, retrieved 2026]. |
| Rob Langhorne | Co-Founder, CTO | Original technology developer of Wireless Wall and Cylentium technologies [Marketing Instytucji Naukowych i Badawczych, December 2021]. |
| Dr. Dennis Volpano | Predecessor Technology Lead | Co-founded Cranite Systems, Inc., developing technology that informed Cylentium’s Zero Identity concept [Marketing of Scientific and Research Institutions, 2021]. |
The Commercialization Hurdle
For all its technical ambition, Cylentium faces the classic startup transition from promising technology to commercial proof. The public record shows no verifiable, named financing rounds, lead investors, or post-money valuations for the company itself [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief, retrieved 2024]. One 2021 article noted the company was “aggressively and successfully raising funds,” but disclosed no specifics [Marketing of Scientific and Research Institutions, 2021]. Similarly, while its target buyer list is expansive, there is no independently verifiable public record of a named paying customer, a production deployment, or a quantified contract [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief, retrieved 2024]. The go-to-market motion remains theoretical. The competitive set, per available data, includes firms like Mazaroth IT Solutions and Hogo, but Cylentium’ differentiation rests on its Layer 2 architecture and invisibility claim [Crunchbase, retrieved 2024]. The risks are straightforward.
- Proof of deployment. The technology’s efficacy in complex, scaled enterprise environments versus controlled government settings is untested in the public domain.
- Funding runway. Without a disclosed institutional round, the company’s capital base for sustained R&D and sales expansion is unclear.
- Market education. Convincing CISO teams to rethink security from the data-link layer up, rather than adding another tool atop existing stacks, requires significant market development.
Cylentium’s proposition is a bold architectural bet. It is not chasing the latest AI buzzword; it is proposing a different foundation. The question for Ronhaar and Langhorne is whether the pedigree of its underlying tech and the severity of the threat landscape can overcome the silence in its commercial track record. Can a company that promises to make networks invisible first make itself visible to the checkwriters and enterprise buyers who matter?
Sources
- [Cylentium, retrieved 2024] Cyber Invisibility Technology | Cylentium | https://cylentium.com/
- [Calgary Economic Development, 2025] Paris Air Show, Company Booklet | https://calgaryeconomicdevelopment.com/assets/Uploads/TAP_2025_Paris-Air_Show_Trade_Booklet-.pdf
- [EIN Presswire, November 2021] Cylentium unveils Cyber Invisibility & Zero Identity for home consumers at CES 2022 | https://www.einpresswire.com/article/557010562/cylentium-unveils-cyber-invisibility-zero-identity-for-home-consumers-at-ces-2022-in-las-vegas
- [LinkedIn, retrieved 2024] Wayne Ronhaar - Founder & CEO, Cylentium | https://www.linkedin.com/in/wayne-ronhaar-8152a7
- [Marketing Instytucji Naukowych i Badawczych, December 2021] Zero Identity - nowy paradygmat cyberbezpieczeństwa | https://minib.pl/old/zero-identity-nowy-paradygmat-cyberbezpieczenstwa/
- [Justia Patents Search, retrieved 2026] Patents assigned to Cranite Systems, Inc. | https://patents.justia.com/assignee/cranite-systems-inc
- [IDCrawl, retrieved 2026] Wayne Ronhaar's Instagram, Twitter & Facebook on IDCrawl | https://www.idcrawl.com/wayne-ronhaar
- [ZoomInfo, August 2021] Cylentium company profile | https://www.zoominfo.com/c/cylentium/526077919
- [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief, retrieved 2024] Cylentium research brief | (source summary)
- [Marketing of Scientific and Research Institutions, 2021] zero identity, the new cybersecurity paradigm | https://reference-global.com/download/article/10.2478/minib-2021-0023.pdf
- [Crunchbase, retrieved 2024] Cylentium - Crunchbase Company Profile & Funding | https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/cylentium