• Prague-based Look AI Ventures leads German SECJUR’s recent round of investment
• SECJUR is an all-in-one GRC (Governance, Risk, and Compliance) platform that simplifies compliance for mid-market businesses through AI automation
• The new partnership will help the startup expand its AI applications, including risk modeling for Information Security Frameworks, and accelerate distribution for more businesses to streamline their compliance processes

This October, Look AI Ventures – the Czech AI-focused VC fund – announced investing in SECJUR, the Hamburg based AI-powered compliance automation platform. The round was joined by the renowned German business angel and athlete Mario Götze, the amount of the round remains undisclosed.

Tackling the Growing Complexity of Compliance

SECJUR’s founder and CEO Niklas Hanitsch comes from a legal background. He was working at the legal department of Amazon when he realized the growing demand for compliance automation. One particular trigger for starting SECJUR in 2018 was the introduction of GDPR that same year.

All over the world, regulatory requirements are increasingly difficult for businesses to navigate using traditional methods. Relying on manual compliance methods is both time-intensive and expensive, placing a heavy burden on resources, especially for mid-sized companies. Thus, Automation tools become essential in today’s regulatory environment, helping companies to minimize possible manual mistakes, maintain timely compliance, and avoid any possible fiscal trouble. This drives the surge on the global compliance automation tools market. Its projected sales amount USD 2.9B in 2024 and are set for rapid growth toward USD 13,4B by 2034.

‘We founded Secjur before the first successful large language models were released, but even then, we recognized the potential of AI-powered compliance automation and designed our database architectures accordingly,’ Mr Hanitsch recalls.

In 2022, SECJUR raised a Seed round of EUR 5.5M from the Berlin-based Visionaries Club and a company of angels.

‘Sadly, compliance has become a massive pain for businesses of all sizes since its management is manual, repetitive and expensive. SECJUR solves this by automating compliance for businesses of all sizes and allows them to manage it within one software. In the future, they will be part of every company’s IT stack,’ Visionaries Club’s founding partner Robert Lacher comments.

A Platform to Automate the Implementation of Compliance Documentation

Today, SECJUR has grown into a comprehensive platform addressing data privacy, information security, whistleblowing, anti-money laundering, and supply chain management. Integrating AI-driven automation with expert insights, SECJUR streamlines compliance processes, offering mid-sized businesses an accessible and cost-effective solution for managing regulatory requirements.

SECJUR streamlines compliance by automating processes and facilitating the implementation of standards such as GDPR, ISO 27001, NIS2, TISAX, and more with efficiency and reliability. Reducing the need for extensive manual effort, the platform saves businesses significant time. Combining cutting-edge AI-driven automation with expert legal insights, the platform serves as a ‘productized compliance department,’ offering a seamless and effective approach to regulatory management.

‘The privacy-by-design solution that lets companies ‘chat’ with their compliance documentation. This can help to streamline security questionnaires by potential customers or help employees understand certain aspects of the internal regulation,’ Mr Hanitsch explains.

The startup’s solution demonstrates flexibility and reliability, evidenced by partnerships with such household names as Samsung, Mercedes-Benz, Tomorrow Banking,and more. 

Bringing AI Innovation to a Traditionally Manual Space

Look AI Ventures is the Czech Republic’s pioneering investment fund dedicated solely to early-stage AI startups. Its experienced team of managers and AI specialists focuses on fostering AI-driven innovation and accelerating the development of transformative AI solutions across key markets.

‘Investing in SECJUR is our strategic move to address the increasing complexity of regulatory compliance. Their highly automated platform not only simplifies obtaining and maintaining compliance certifications but also features one of the most powerful compliance backend engines in the market. This engine, built on extensive data and expert feedback, is a valuable asset on its own, bringing scalability to a traditionally consultancy-driven business. Secjur has emerged as a very competitive player in the DACH region, standing out among both automated and traditional compliance providers,’ Look AI Ventures’ partner Angelo Burgarello states.

SECJUR embedded stand-out expertise and efficiency in its comprehensive platform. Its flagship product, the Digital Compliance Office presents a combination of advanced tech with an intuitive design, facilitating compliance management for any businesses. By bridging the gap between technical intricacies and practical usability, the platform offers streamlined and affordable access to automated compliance solutions.

Fueling Further Growth and Distribution

Teaming up with Look AI Ventures will enable SECJUR to enhance its AI-driven capabilities further. According to Mr Hanitsch, the company will use the new investment to focus on expanding AI applications, such as risk modeling for Information Security Frameworks and fuel distribution to help more companies streamline their compliance effortlessly.

‘We see Look AI Ventures as a key strategic partner in our journey to becoming a category-defining company in the world of compliance automation. We’ve made significant progress and aim to accelerate our pace in the coming year. That’s why we’re grateful to have a strategic partner to help turn this vision of AI-enabled Compliance Management into reality over the next few years,’ Mr Hanitsch adds.

Developing AI-powered solutions for compliance automation in the EU is crucial to keep pace with the region’s increasingly complex regulatory landscape. AI tools significantly reduce the time and cost associated with manual compliance processes, making it more accessible for businesses, particularly SMEs. Additionally, these tools improve accuracy, help identify risks in real time, and ensure businesses meet evolving standards such as GDPR, thus preventing costly penalties and enhancing overall operational efficiency.