AI & the Fifth Domain of Warfare: A Talk with Eyal Balicer, Cybersecurity Innovator & Thought Leader

AI & the Fifth Domain of Warfare: A Talk with Eyal Balicer, Cybersecurity Innovator & Thought Leader

By Michael Matias, CEO of Clarity and Forbes 30 Under 30 alumCybersecurity has entered a new domain—literally. As Eyal Balicer put it in our recent conversation: “Cyberspace is now the fifth domain of warfare.” But in this domain, the battleground isn’t just code. It’s control.Eyal brings a rare vantage point to the AI-cyber nexus—he’s held senior cybersecurity roles in the Israeli government, Fortune 100 companies like Citi, and top-tier venture capital. Our discussion centered on a growing truth: with the rise of agentic systems—AI entities that can act, decide, and evolve—the mission of cybersecurity is changing.“We are shifting from a world where intelligence was a scarce resource to one where that is not necessarily the case; true agency is becoming the new elusive driver of prosperity and growth,” Eyal explained. “The systems we are now securing are not just automated—they are autonomous, highly competent, and opaque. Traditional defenses cannot keep up.”It’s a shift I’ve seen firsthand at Clarity, where we build proactive defenses against deepfakes and AI-generated phishing. Just like Shahar Peled told me about agentic AI revolutionizing offensive testing, Eyal sees these agents redefining global threat models. The challenge isn’t identifying known threats—it’s safeguarding systems that learn, adapt, and act independently.And that requires a new security architecture.“An AI agent can have fluid permissions, context-based roles, and evolving identity,” he told me. “Conventional IAM just does not cut it anymore.” In that sense, Balicer echoes voices like Ron Nissim and Alon Jackson, who both called for a redefinition of identity management in the AI age.But Eyal's view goes broader: geopolitical. He sees cybersecurity not just as a business enabler, but as a pillar of national resilience. From financial systems to defense infrastructure, the stakes have never been higher. “The future will require autonomous cybersecurity—not just automated, pre-defined playbooks, but real-time, adaptive agents who reason and defend at the edge, with varying degrees of human intervention.”We discussed how the regulatory map only adds to the complexity. “The fragmentation across jurisdictions makes cross-border cybersecurity brittle,” Eyal warned. His point was clear: the only viable strategy is proactive, agentic, adaptable security. Not static controls. Not red-alert dashboards.The recent acquisition of Wiz by Google, he said, is just the beginning. “This will eventually lead to an entrepreneurial Cambrian explosion in cybersecurity,” Eyal predicted. And much like Dorit Dor told me, the organizations that survive will be those that move fast—and let AI lead the charge.As we closed, his advice was blunt: “Ignoring this revolution is not an option. AI evolves daily. Your security safeguards and controls should not lag behind.”My takeaway? Eyal isn’t just talking about new tools—he’s laying out a new doctrine.Agentic AI isn’t coming. It’s here. And if we don’t secure it now, we risk losing control of the systems that already make decisions for us.The future of cyber isn’t just proactive. It’s autonomous. And it’s already reshaping the balance of power.

Episoder(1167)

Ep87: Shuli Gilutz | UX Researcher at Children's Technology

Ep87: Shuli Gilutz | UX Researcher at Children's Technology

Shuli Gilutz, Ph.D. specializes in UX research, assessment, and design of interactive products for children. She works in industry and academia, teaching, advising, and conducting research, as well as a strategic consultant for the development and design of children's digital experiences. Dr. Gilutz is a global speaker about kids and digital media, age-appropriate UX, usability, play, and learning. She teaches at Tel-Aviv University, Shenkar’s Toy Invention program, and is a board member of the Designing for Children's Rights Association.

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Ep90: Isaac Applbaum | Co-Founder of MizMaa Ventures, Prev a Senior Vice President at Bank of America

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Isaac “Yitz” Applbaum is a co-founder of MizMaa Ventures, a $200M fund which invests in Israeli startup companies. He is an advisor to EIGHT VC Partners and Owl Ventures, and is on the advisory board of Vintage Investment Partners. Previously Yitz was the Founder and Chief Executive Officer at Concorde Solutions Inc., which he sold to Bank of America where he held an SVP position. Applbaum was a Partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners.

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Ep89: Irina Meyer | Managing Director of Sils Capital Emmy Award Winner

Ep89: Irina Meyer | Managing Director of Sils Capital Emmy Award Winner

Irina is a director, adviser and often majority stake investor in the fund's portfolio companies. Fluent in 6 languages, Irina is working with ventures in Switzerland, Israel, US and China. Irina's core expertise is in development and promotion of new technologies in digital media and interactive entertainment. She is an active member of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and the Emmys Foundation. Irina is a recipient of the 2011 Emmy for the Outstanding Achievement in Interactive Media

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Ep85: Nir Bar-Lev | Co-Founder and CEO of Allegro AI

Ep85: Nir Bar-Lev | Co-Founder and CEO of Allegro AI

Nir began his hi-tech career in the IDF and since then has spent almost 30 years in the industry in leadership positions. After completing his MBA at Wharton (BSc CS in Technion), he was one of the founding members of the Google R&D center in Tel Aviv and worked in GM leadership roles within the company (search advertising in EMEA, GM of Bebapay). Currently Nir is the co-founder and CEO of Allegro AI.

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Ep83: Aaron Tartakovski | Co-Founder and CEO of Epic CleanTec

Ep83: Aaron Tartakovski | Co-Founder and CEO of Epic CleanTec

Aaron Tartakovsky is co-founder and CEO of Epic CleanTec, a sustainability startup redefining how cities manage their water. He previously served as Director of Business Development and Marketing for CB Engineers, overseeing its R&D division. Prior to that he worked in federal politics and has remained active in affecting public policy on the local, state, and national levels. In 2017 he was recognized as a GreenBiz 30 under 30 honoree. Aaron is also a founding member and investor in the Silicon Valley-based J-Ventures Fund.

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Ep81: Kobi Mahat | Actor and Movie Producer

Ep81: Kobi Mahat | Actor and Movie Producer

Kobi Mahat is one of the most well known and respect Israeli TV personas. He appeared in over 10,000 hours of live TV at the "children's channel" and has since acted in dozens of films and TV shows. Most recently Kobi is an accomplished film producer, having written and directed some of Israel's most well-known films. He holds a B.A in Psychology and a Masters in Organizational Behavior from Tel Aviv University.

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Ep84: Michal Segalov | Director of Engineering at Google

Ep84: Michal Segalov | Director of Engineering at Google

Michal is a Director of Engineering at Google. She currently leads teams working on Natural Language Understanding, and previously worked on the Google Play team focusing on consumer features, Play Games APIs for developers, Google’s Networking infrastructure and YouTube. Michal co-initiated Mind The Gap, a program aimed at encouraging high school girls to select computer science and math as their high-school major. The program expanded globally and is now in its 8th year, with more than 50,000 participants to date.

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