Check Point doubles down on AI, MSP market with Rotate acqui-hire
Talent acquisition aimed at accelerating expansion in the fast-growing managed service provider segment.
Check Point’s decision to acqui-hire the team behind startup Rotate is less a small tactical move and more a signal of where the company believes cybersecurity is headed: toward AI-driven protection embedded directly into daily workflows.
Check Point noted in Thursday’s announcement, which also included the purchase of Israeli cyber startups Cyclops and Cyata, that it was not a traditional product acquisition but an acqui-hire. “We acquired the talent of Rotate,” the company said, underscoring that the strategic value lies in the startup’s team and expertise rather than in standalone revenues or an independent business line.
Rotate, founded in 2023 by CEO Ro’ee Margalit and CTO Avidan Barak, veterans of Israel’s Unit 8200 and the Prime Minister’s Office, raised approximately $8 million from investors including at.inc, Treasury, UpWest, G20 and Torch. The company developed a purpose-built platform designed to help Managed Service Providers (MSPs) centrally manage security across fragmented digital work environments.
That expertise will now form the foundation of Check Point’s newly created “Workspace Security” division, a category the company is establishing to address AI-driven threats in modern business environments.
CEO Nadav Zafrir framed the move as part of a broader shift in the threat landscape. “This acquisition will allow us to accelerate toward a consolidated, unified ability to work with MSPs,” Zafrir said, noting that AI-powered attacks are becoming increasingly automated and are targeting collaboration tools, SaaS applications and day-to-day workflows rather than just traditional network infrastructure.
The MSP market has emerged as a strategic priority for Check Point, which views it as a significant growth engine heading into 2026. Small and mid-sized organizations are increasingly outsourcing cybersecurity management, creating demand for centralized, easy-to-manage protection layers. By integrating Rotate’s team, Check Point aims to build a unified, AI-powered management interface that consolidates protection across devices, browsers, email, SaaS platforms and remote access environments.
Rotate’s founders bring direct experience in that ecosystem. Margalit was an early employee at Bonobo AI, while Barak previously held senior roles at Datto and Kaseya, companies deeply embedded in the MSP market. Their operational familiarity with MSP workflows and security gaps is expected to accelerate product development inside Check Point.
The emphasis on talent over technology reflects a wider industry trend. As AI reshapes cybersecurity, companies are increasingly competing for specialized engineering teams capable of adapting defenses to automated, rapidly evolving threats. In that environment, experienced founders and product leaders can represent a faster path to innovation than integrating an external platform.
“Our goal is to make unified, AI-driven protection accessible to millions of organizations worldwide,” Margalit said of the transition.
