Venture capitalists look for the "big win," not for this week, but for the future. And they stake millions of dollars on their ability to find the winning combination of team and technology that will turn a very good idea into a very profitable company.

2019 has been an active year for venture funds as investors place their bets on a wide range of security and privacy technologies. From artificial intelligence to zero trust security, startup companies are looking for ways to slow attackers, prevent damage, and increase security while keeping costs low and performance high.

Dark Reading has covered many of the significant venture security events in the first half of 2019, but as this half comes to a close it can be valuable to look back and see which technologies professional analysts and investors believe will be important in coming years.

One of the notable characteristics of the major venture announcements in 2019 is the lack of a single technology theme. The companies featured in these 7 deals have products for cloud applications and IoT, analytics and encryption. The only common thread in the seven is their focus on security.

It's important to note that these are not the only security industry venture capital deals that have been concluded in the first half of 2019. These seven have made the list because they represent broader trends, demonstrate something important about the shape of the market, or show just how much confidence the venture funds have in particular technology directions. And for CISOs, security managers, and team members looking forward toward next-generation security products, these seven provide an important road map for the future.

Which of these technologies do you think will be most important in the coming five years? Do you think any of these will have a truly profound impact on the way we secure enterprise IT (or OT) networks? Let us know where you'll place your bets in the comment section, below.

(Image: Brian Jackson VIA Adobe Stock)