Launch HN: Traceforce (YC S26) – Secure AI apps, one device at a time

A Y Combinator-backed startup called Traceforce, per a Hacker News post, is launching a device-level security tool to give companies visibility into the AI applications running on their employees' devices. The problem is urgent: workers are adopting AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude far faster than IT and security teams can track. The founders spoke with more than fifty CISOs and CIOs and found this visibility gap is pervasive. On average, Traceforce has discovered fifteen AI applications per device across organizations using it, each connected to five to ten data sources via Model Context Protocols. The tool installs a lightweight binary and browser extension on each device, and within thirty minutes, real-time data flows to a centralized dashboard where security teams can monitor AI activity, set controls, and get alerted to risky behavior—like API keys being exposed in generated code or developers about to execute destructive database commands. Deployed across more than a thousand devices at ten organizations, Traceforce says this real-time visibility lets employees stay productive while protecting against data leaks.

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