Overmind CEO on AI Security and His MI5 Past

Jan de Vries · 2026-05-21

This week on the podcast, we sat down with Tyler Edwards, the founder and CEO of Overmind. It's a devtool that lets AI learn directly from live production data. Think of it as giving your AI a real-world education, not just textbook training. Tyler's background is anything but ordinary. He used to work for MI5 and MI6, the UK's intelligence and security agencies. Now, he's channeling that expertise into making AI agents safer and smarter. Earlier this year, his team secured $2.5 million in fresh funding (converted from €2.3 million) for their AI agent security startup. ### What Overmind Actually Does Overmind uses something called pattern of life analysis. It sounds complex, but it's really about observing how AI agents behave in the wild. Instead of guessing how an agent should act, Overmind watches what actually happens and turns that data into continuous improvement. Here's what that means for teams: - **Ship secure agents:** Catch vulnerabilities before they become problems. - **Build specialized agents:** Tailor AI behavior to specific tasks without starting from scratch. - **Continuous learning:** Agents get better over time, not just during initial training.  ### The Conversation We Had During our chat, Tyler opened up about his goals for Overmind and his fascinating career path. We talked about how his time in intelligence shaped his approach to security. He believes that understanding threats requires seeing the full picture, not just isolated data points. "In intelligence work, you learn that patterns matter," Tyler said. "The same is true for AI agents. You need to see how they behave in context, not just in a test environment." ### A Special Thanks to Vanta This episode of the EU-Startups Podcast is brought to you by Vanta. The trust management platform helps over 12,000 companies, including Nando's, Allica Bank, and Granola, start and scale their security programs while building trust with buyers. It saves security teams time and improves program visibility by automating over 35 compliance frameworks, such as SOC 2 and ISO 27001, as well as GRC workflows like risk management. Click here to learn more. ### Why This Matters for European Startups Tyler's story is a reminder that European talent is world-class. From intelligence agencies to cutting-edge AI security, the innovation coming out of the EU is real. Overmind is just one example of how European startups are solving global problems. If you're building AI agents or working with production data, this episode is for you. Tyler shares practical advice on security, scaling, and staying ahead of the curve. It's a conversation you won't want to miss.