Terra Industries leads $1m investment in Nigerian cybersecurity startup Aeon

In an exciting development for Africa’s tech landscape, Terra Industries has announced a $1 million seed investment in Aeon, a promising Nigerian cybersecurity startup. The startup aims to enhance cyber defence infrastructure across Africa and the Global South, addressing a critical need for robust cybersecurity solutions in these regions.

The investment round also features participation from notable figures, including Olugbenga Agboola, the co-founder and CEO of Flutterwave, who is joining the effort through his venture fund, Resilience17. Their involvement underscores the growing interest in cybersecurity innovations as businesses increasingly recognise the importance of protecting digital assets.

This investment follows a successful pilot project between Terra Industries and Aeon that took place earlier this year, establishing a foundation for a deeper partnership that goes beyond financial support.

Similar read: Terra Industries closes $52m seed round, opens London office

As they work together, both companies hope to strengthen cybersecurity measures and pave the way for a more secure digital environment in Africa, ultimately fostering growth and innovation across the continent.

Terra Industries and Aeon join forces on cybersecurity

Aeon is a cybersecurity company on a mission to help organisations lock down their networks and data, and to catch weaknesses before attackers do. Its tools scan across code, cloud systems and endpoints, finding vulnerabilities and fixing them fast.

The company runs on two core products: Aeon Edge and Aeon Console. Both are built with high-stakes clients in mind: banks and financial institutions, cloud service providers, and the operators of critical infrastructure.

Aeon was founded by three entrepreneurs: Samuel Ogbonyomi, Ben Eluan and Alex Idowu.

Ogbonyomi points to a problem that plagues many operators: they’re juggling a pile of separate security tools, yet still lack a clear, single picture of where they’re exposed.

That gap is part of what makes Aeon’s new partnership with Terra Industries such a compelling fit. As Terra explained, the two companies are bringing complementary strengths to the table. Terra handles physical security, while Aeon takes on the digital and cyber side.

Together, they’ve formed a commercial joint venture that will see Aeon’s technology deployed across both military and commercial operations. The two firms also plan to chase contracts jointly with governments and corporations across the Global South. Nathan Nwachuku, CEO of Terra Industries, sees Aeon becoming nothing less than “a cyber defence layer” for financial institutions, corporations, governments and militaries.

Terra Industries, founded in 2024, builds autonomous security systems for critical infrastructure, spanning land, air and maritime environments. In August, the company closed its seed round at $52 million after raising an additional $18 million.

More recently, Terra Industries has pushed beyond traditional defence work into commercial infrastructure. It’s already secured contracts to supply autonomous security systems for mining operations in Nigeria, a sign of where the company is heading.

For Terra, the deal extends its reach: it can now protect not just physical assets, but the digital systems that keep them running. For Aeon, the investment brings something equally valuable: a strategic partner with deep, established relationships across critical infrastructure and defence.

It’s a pairing built on a simple but powerful idea: in a world where the physical and digital are increasingly inseparable, protecting one without the other leaves the door open.

Also read: Terra Industries wins $1m deal to protect Kaduna gold and lithium mining site