Straight talk on cybersecurity brand and growth

We scored the 77 cybersecurity startups exhibiting at RSA. Here is what we found.

For our Cult Products Awards report, we scored every startup at RSA's Early Stage Expo and Next Stage on vision, story, and following. Three tiers emerged, and a sea of blue.

Phill Keaney-Bolland

6 May 2025

Be marmite, not butter: Why divisive brands attract the biggest fans.

Yaya put its own proposition up for public critique. Roland Gurney took it apart, and the phrase that came out of it has stuck: be marmite, not butter.

We branded and launched ZEST Security out of stealth in 2024. TechCrunch has since named ZEST one of the top cybersecurity startups of Disrupt 2025.

The Cybersecurity Cult Products Awards report

We scored all 77 startups exhibiting at RSA's Early Stage Expo and Next Stage on proposition, brand, and marketing. Here is what the category gets wrong, and who gets it right.