Startup Doppel deploys AI agents to combat online fraud and impersonation

Silicon Valley startup Doppel is harnessing AI agents to combat the rise of AI-powered fraud, creating a technological counterforce against increasingly sophisticated cybercriminals. The company’s approach of using artificial intelligence to fight artificial intelligence has attracted $35 million in new funding and a $205 million valuation, positioning it at the frontier of battling digital deception as social engineering attacks grow more convincing and widespread.

The big picture: Doppel has built autonomous AI agents that scan the internet, dark web, and social media platforms to identify fraudulent activity ranging from fake accounts to malicious advertisements.

• The system screens 100 million potential phishing threats daily, filtering real dangers from false alarms with approximately 90% accuracy.
• Founder Kevin Tian describes the necessity of this approach: “If threat actors can use AI to spin up these attacks for just a few cents on the dollar, we’ve got to make sure that we can also handle that volume on our side.”

Key details: The company replaced human contractors with AI agents in September 2024, automating 30% of security operations while developing a “threat graph” to track malicious hacker activities.

• Doppel has attracted 180 enterprise customers including major organizations like United Airlines, OpenAI, and Coinbase.
• The startup initially focused on NFT-related fraud before expanding to combat broader social engineering threats.

Why this matters: AI has enabled increasingly sophisticated social engineering attacks that are difficult to detect, including WhatsApp messages impersonating executives, fake LinkedIn profiles, and realistic company website duplicates.

• In 2024 alone, Google suspended 40 million malicious advertiser accounts, many using AI-generated content specifically designed to deceive users.

What they’re saying: Tian views Doppel as addressing “one of the biggest problems in the world today, which is AI enabled social engineering.”

Behind the numbers: The recent $35 million funding round led by Bessemer Venture Partners brings Doppel’s total venture backing to $55.5 million, reflecting investor confidence in AI-powered security solutions.