In Episode 61 of the Cybersecurity Matters Podcast, Austin Gadient—CTO and Co-Founder of Vali Cyber—shares the real-world experiences that led him from competitive hacking at the U.S. Air Force Academy to securing national satellite infrastructure, and ultimately to building a company focused on protecting the most overlooked layer in modern environments: Linux and the hypervisor.
Austin’s story is rooted in firsthand exposure to critical security gaps; places where traditional, Windows-centric security tools failed outright. Those gaps didn’t just create risk; they forced a rethink of how infrastructure security should actually work.
This conversation explores how those lessons shaped Vali Cyber’s founding, culture, technical philosophy, and why hypervisor security is rapidly becoming a frontline concern for defenders.
In this podcast, you’ll learn: #
- How real-world military and satellite security exposed gaps traditional tools couldn’t cover
- Why Linux and hypervisors have become prime targets for modern attackers
- What led to the founding of Vali Cyber and why the problem demanded a new category
- How strong technical culture and psychological safety drive better security outcomes
- Why hypervisor security is moving from “niche” to “mission critical”
Featured Insights from Austin Gadient, CTO & Cofounder, Vali Cyber#