Absolute doubles down on AI security with FirmGuard deal

SEATTLE—Absolute Security has acquired Phoenix Technologies’ FirmGuard business, adding firmware security, management and networking capabilities designed to help enterprises secure artificial intelligence (AI) workloads, endpoints and autonomous agents. 

The acquisition expands Absolute’s firmware-based cyber resilience platform with additional visibility, integrity verification, posture management, patching and compliance capabilities at the BIOS and UEFI firmware level. The company said the combined offering will provide organizations with stronger control and recovery capabilities for AI-enabled environments. 

“AI-driven threats and fragility are disrupting enterprises from the cloud to the endpoint,” said Christy Wyatt, president and CEO of Absolute Security. “Full resilience requires visibility, control, security, and recovery capabilities in the device hardware.” 

Absolute said the move comes as firmware attacks continue to grow and organizations face increasing pressure to secure AI deployments. Because firmware operates below the operating system, it is often viewed as a critical layer for device management, recovery and security, while also representing a target for sophisticated cyberattacks. 

The company’s Persistence technology is embedded in firmware through partnerships with OEMs including Dell, HP and Lenovo, providing a connection to devices that enables management, security and recovery functions even when operating systems become compromised or fail. Absolute said it is also working with NVIDIA and HP to extend these capabilities to AI workstations and autonomous agents. 

Through the integration of FirmGuard, customers will gain expanded below-the-operating-system management, continuous firmware integrity monitoring and patching, additional secure data-wipe capabilities and a unified firmware-to-cloud management console, according to the company. 

“We built FirmGuard to make firmware protection simple and secure,” said Gerard Moore, president and CEO of FirmGuard. “With FirmGuard integrated into Absolute, customers can remain confident their AI devices will stay secure, compliant, and running.” 

Terms were not disclosed. Boston Meridian Partners served as financial advisor to Phoenix Technologies on the transaction.  

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