CloudSEK

Denied a US visa in 2012 at 23. Funded with 10 million dollars by a US state at 37. In 2012, Rahul Sasi from Mavelikkara, Kerala, was invited to present his cybersecurity research at the globally respected Black Hat Briefings in the United States. But at the visa interview, authorities questioned his low salary, his lack of a completed degree, and how a BTech dropout could qualify for such a conference. Despite an official invitation, his visa was denied. The rejection hurt. But it sparked a resolve. He would not return to the US until he could create jobs there. Diagnosed with ADHD as a child, Rahul often struggled in structured classrooms. In 2010, he dropped out of engineering to pursue an internship with iSIGHT Partners, later acquired by Google Cloud. He moved to Pune, lived frugally, and poured every spare hour into cybersecurity research. In 2015, he founded CloudSEK. In early 2026, CloudSEK raised 10 million dollars from Connecticut Innovations, marking its return to America, this time as a founder building opportunity. Sometimes rejection is not the end of the story. It is where it begins. @cloudsek #RahulSasi #CloudSEK #StartupIndia #CyberSecurity [Rahul Sasi, CloudSEK, cybersecurity startup]