Lakera vs Cisco (Robust Intelligence)
Updated March 10, 2026
Overview
Lakera provides real-time AI security that protects LLM applications from prompt injection, jailbreaks, data leakage, and toxic content. Lakera Guard is a low-latency API that scans inputs and outputs to detect and block attacks before they reach the model. The platform defends against the OWASP Top 10 for LLMs and is used by enterprises to secure customer-facing AI applications.
Robust Intelligence, acquired by Cisco in late 2024, provides AI validation and protection. Now integrated into Cisco's security portfolio, the platform offers automated red-teaming, continuous model validation, and runtime firewall protection for LLM applications. It detects adversarial attacks, data poisoning, hallucinations, and prompt injections across the AI lifecycle.
Key features
Core capabilities each platform advertises.
- Prompt injection detection
- Content moderation
- PII detection and masking
- Real-time threat monitoring
- API-based security layer
- AI firewall and guardrails
- Model validation and testing
- Continuous monitoring
- Compliance reporting
- Enterprise security policies
Strengths and tradeoffs
What each tool does well, and the limitations to keep in mind.
Pros
- Real-time protection against prompt injection and LLM-specific attacks
- Free tier enables testing and evaluation without upfront costs
- AI-powered red teaming helps identify vulnerabilities proactively
- Acquired by Check Point provides enterprise credibility and long-term stability
Cons
- Enterprise pricing not publicly disclosed makes budget planning difficult
- Smaller ecosystem compared to established security vendors
- Custom pricing model may not suit teams seeking predictable costs
- Relatively new company with limited long-term production track record
Pros
- Pioneered AI security category with first AI Firewall
- USD 400M Cisco acquisition validates technology
- Comprehensive protection against AI-specific threats
- Trusted by major enterprises
Cons
- Now part of Cisco—product direction may change
- Technology relatively young and unproven at massive scale
- Cisco has mixed track record with acquisitions
- Requires continuous monitoring infrastructure
Lakera or Cisco (Robust — which should you choose?
Choose Lakera if you wantChoose if you want
- Protecting LLM apps from prompt injection
- Automated content moderation
- PII detection before data reaches LLMs
- Compliance monitoring for AI systems
- Real-time security threat prevention
Choose Cisco (Robust if you wantChoose if you want
- Enterprise AI governance
- Model risk management
- Regulatory compliance for AI systems
- Automated AI security testing
- Production AI monitoring
Compare Lakera and Cisco (Robust Intelligence) on your own traffic
Respan lets you trace LLM and agent calls across any model or framework, A/B test prompts on production traffic, and route requests across 500+ models through one gateway.