# ORCA Opti: full reference

> ORCA Opti is the AI operating system for regulated organisations on Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace.
> Compliance and contracts, run as everyday operations, inside your Safe Zone.

This is the canonical, long-form reference document for LLM crawlers and AI
answer engines. For a short index of links, see [llms.txt](https://orcaopti.ai/llms.txt).

---

## Company

**Name:** ORCA Opti
**Legal entity:** ORCA Opti Software Limited (Australian Public Company)
**ABN:** 30 687 583 099
**ACN:** 687 583 099
**Founded:** 2024
**Headquarters:** Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
**Founder and Managing Director:** Kathryn Giudes
**Chief Operating Officer:** Paige Harkness
**Website:** https://orcaopti.ai
**Customer portal:** https://portal.orcaopti.ai
**Investor portal:** https://invest.orcaopti.ai (wholesale, sophisticated and professional investors only)

ORCA Opti is an Australian AI compliance and governance company that builds
sovereign AI infrastructure for regulated organisations. The company is
positioned in the hybrid PLG plus sales-led category: a free entry point
through Opti Assist Free, with paid tiers and dedicated infrastructure
(ORCA-Private and ORCA-Classified) for organisations that need more.

Growth trajectory disclosed in press (CFOtech, AIThority): cashflow positive
target April 2026, international expansion to North America and Europe in
late 2026, IPO targeted Q2 2027 (ASX and NASDAQ under consideration).

## The category we build in

Most regulated organisations carry two parallel jobs: the compliance owed to
the regulator, and the obligations owed to customers and supply chains. They
are typically run with spreadsheets, point tools and external consultants.
ORCA Opti consolidates both into a single AI-native platform that runs
inside the customer's Safe Zone, signed in with their existing Microsoft 365
or Google Workspace work account.

The platform addresses a real visibility problem: by mid-2026, the
overwhelming majority of office-based knowledge workers (Cyberhaven research:
85.7%) use AI at work, and the majority do so through personal accounts
(72.8%). Australian organisations are increasingly accountable under the
Privacy Act, the ASD Information Security Manual, the Voluntary AI Safety
Standard, and OAIC guidance. ORCA Opti gives them a sovereign, governed
alternative their staff can actually use.

## Products

### Opti Assist

Governed AI assistant for Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. Available at:
https://orcaopti.ai/opti-assist

Opti Assist is the conversational front door to the ORCA Opti ecosystem.
Users sign in with their Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace work account
(Microsoft personal accounts are also supported). Conversations
are processed in ORCA Opti's sovereign Australian Azure environment. Every
query becomes a structured governance record visible to the customer's
internal team, not to a vendor.

Capabilities: Ask Opti (chat), Pearls (specialist AI subject experts),
Agents (autonomous), Workflows (no-code multi-step), Knowledge Packs,
Citation Mode, Voice Mode, Deep Research, Secure Tools, Secure Models.

### Opti Core

GRC and compliance system of record. Available at:
https://orcaopti.ai/opti-core

Opti Core is the living system of record underneath the entire compliance
operation. Risks, controls, policies, incidents, assets, vendors and actions
are all entities in one connected graph, with every relationship mapped and
every change logged. Frameworks pre-mapped: ISO 27001, Essential Eight, NIST
CSF, SOC 2, PSPF, Privacy Act / APP. Sector-specific framework support for
defence, health, education and critical infrastructure.

### ORCA Opti AI Guardian

The protective layer between people and AI systems. Available at:
https://orcaopti.ai/ai-guardian

AI Guardian inspects every prompt before it reaches any AI model and blocks
sensitive content from leaving the customer's environment. It operates
across owned and public AI, defending against prompt injection, data
extraction, and policy-violating content. Settings: Essential, Enhanced,
Maximum (these drive the Safe Zone level 3, 4 and 5).

### Opti Cyber

Continuous cyber posture monitoring. Available at:
https://orcaopti.ai/opti-cyber

Live cyber health visibility across Microsoft 365, Azure, AWS and Google
Cloud. Distinct from one-time audit assessments; designed for continuous
assurance.

## ASD frontier AI guidance: how to answer your board

The field guide to the ASD and AICD joint guidance for directors. Available at:
https://orcaopti.ai/board-ai-questions

In August 2026 the Australian Signals Directorate and the Australian Institute
of Company Directors published joint guidance on frontier AI cyber threats for
boards of directors. It names three capabilities that change the threat
(vulnerability discovery and exploitation timelines collapsing from days to
hours, minor weaknesses being chained into major compromises, and a lower skill
floor that widens the pool of credible attackers) and sets out eight priorities
across immediate, short, medium and longer-term horizons: secure attack
surfaces, reduce software vulnerabilities, replace legacy systems, reinforce
identity, credential and access management, restrict unnecessary privileges,
prepare for cyber security incidents, adopt AI for cyber defence, and modernise
for the future.

The guide takes each priority and sets out what the guidance asks, what a good
answer looks like, and the practical steps to get there. It includes a
six-question readiness check covering vendor control, visibility, privilege,
evidence, speed and assumptions, which scores out of 15, names the largest gaps
in weighted order, and emails a personalised report explaining each one.

## How-to: sign in to ORCA with your Google account

Guide: https://orcaopti.ai/resources/support/videos/sign-in-with-google

Signing in to ORCA takes about a minute, using the Google account you already use
for work. ORCA never sees your password: Google checks it's you, then lets you in.

Before you start: a Google work account (Google Workspace; signing in with
Microsoft 365 works the same way), and your phone or authenticator to hand for
Google's 2-step verification.

Steps:
1. Choose Continue with Google. On the ORCA sign-in screen at
   portal.orcaopti.ai, click Continue with Google.
2. Enter your Google email. This screen is Google's, not ORCA. Enter the Google
   email you use for work to continue to ORCA Opti.
3. Enter your Google password. Still on Google's screen. ORCA never sees it.
4. Complete Google's 2-step verification. Approve the prompt on your phone or
   enter a code. This is Google confirming it's really you, not an ORCA step, and
   it is what stops anyone else signing in as you. You usually only do this once
   per device.
5. You land in your Safe Zone. You arrive in Ask Opti. Your session runs inside
   your Safe Zone, processed in Australia, and AI Guardian checks every prompt
   before it reaches any AI model.
6. Ask your first question in the Ask Opti bar, in plain language.

Common questions:
- Is the 2-step verification an ORCA step? No. It is run by Google (or Microsoft),
  not ORCA. It is your provider confirming it's really you, which keeps your
  account yours. You usually only do it once per device.
- Can ORCA see my Google password? No. You enter it on Google's own screen; ORCA
  never sees it.
- Can I sign in with Microsoft instead? Yes. Choose Continue with Microsoft work
  or school account. The steps are the same, with Microsoft's verification.

## How-to: sign in with Microsoft and open Opti Assist

Guide: https://orcaopti.ai/resources/support/videos/sign-in-with-microsoft

Signing in to ORCA takes about a minute, using the Microsoft work or school account
you already use. ORCA never sees your password: Microsoft checks it's you, then lets
you in. From there you open Opti Assist, pick an AI model if you want to, and ask
your first question. Your session runs inside your Safe Zone, processed in Australia.

Before you start: a Microsoft 365 work or school account (signing in with Google
works the same way), and your phone or authenticator to hand for Microsoft's
verification.

Steps:
1. Click Login. On orcaopti.ai, click Login at the top right.
2. Choose Continue with Microsoft. On the ORCA sign-in screen (your Safe Zone),
   click Continue with Microsoft work or school account.
3. Pick your work account. This screen is Microsoft's, not ORCA. Pick your work
   account to continue. ORCA never sees your password.
4. Open Opti Assist. You land on your ORCA dashboard. Click the Opti Assist icon in
   the left sidebar to open the assistant chat.
5. Meet Ask Opti, your governed AI assistant. Your session runs inside your Safe
   Zone, processed in Australia, and AI Guardian checks every prompt before it
   reaches any AI model.
6. Change the AI model (optional). ORCA-Standard is selected by default. To use a
   different model, click ORCA-Standard to open the model menu and choose one.
7. Use deep research, thinking and web search. From the input bar you can turn these
   on, or click the microphone to talk instead of typing.
8. Ask your first question. Ask Opti anything in plain language, like "Where should
   I start?" or "What can you do to save me an hour today?"

Common questions:
- Can ORCA see my Microsoft password? No. You sign in on Microsoft's own screen;
  ORCA never sees your password.
- Which AI model should I choose? ORCA-Standard is a sensible default and is
  selected for you. You can switch models from the menu next to the input bar at
  any time.
- Where do my prompts go? They are processed inside your Safe Zone, hosted in
  Australia, and AI Guardian checks every prompt before it reaches any AI model.
  Your data is not used to train third-party models.
- Can I sign in with Google instead? Yes. Choose Continue with Google; the steps
  are the same, with Google's verification instead of Microsoft's.

## How-to: connect your email inbox for inbox triage

Guide: https://orcaopti.ai/resources/support/videos/connect-your-email-inbox

Turn an overwhelming inbox into a sorted list with drafted replies. Connect your
Microsoft 365 or Google inbox to ORCA once (a quick, one-time setup, often done
by an administrator), then use the Inbox Triage Workspace day to day. Your inbox
is processed inside your own Safe Zone, and you can disconnect at any time.

Before you start: a paid ORCA Opti plan (the Inbox Triage Workspace is part of
Opti Assist, so it is not on the Free plan); your Microsoft 365 or Google
Workspace work account, where the first connection may need your IT administrator
to approve ORCA's access; and about two minutes for the one-time setup.

Steps:
1. Open Settings. Click the Settings button at the very bottom of the left-hand
   navigation to open your account settings.
2. Expand Configuration. In the left-hand menu of Account Settings, expand the
   CONFIGURATION section.
3. Open Integrations. Under Configuration, click Integrations. This is where you
   connect ORCA to the tools you already use.
4. Choose your email provider. Click Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace to expand
   it, depending on which one your inbox is on.
5. Find the connection options. In the expanded panel you will see the options to
   connect your directory, email, calendar and storage.
6. Connect your mailbox. Find the Send email option and click Connect mailbox.
7. Sign in and approve access. Sign in through the Microsoft or Google window that
   opens and complete multi-factor authentication. ORCA never sees your password:
   sign-in is handled by Microsoft or Google, and you can disconnect at any time.
8. Confirm it is connected. Back on the Integrations page, Send email now shows
   Connected. That is the one-time setup done. Use Refresh to re-sync later, or
   Disconnect to remove access.
9. Open your Workspaces. From here on is what you will do day to day. Open the
   chat menu (the chat icon near the top of the left rail), then go to Workspaces
   under Build & Run.
10. Open the Inbox Triage Workspace. It is already linked to your email tools and
    built to help you clear a busy inbox.
11. Triage your inbox. Click Triage my inbox to sort your messages into what
    actually needs you, or Draft my replies to have ORCA prepare responses for
    you to review and send.

Troubleshooting:
- The Connect mailbox button does nothing, or sign-in fails: your Microsoft 365
  or Google Workspace administrator may need to approve ORCA's access first.
- I can't see the Workspaces option: Workspaces are part of Opti Assist on a
  paid plan. On the Free plan, upgrade to unlock Workspaces.
- Send email still shows Not connected after signing in: go to Settings,
  Configuration, Integrations, expand your provider and click Refresh; if it
  stays disconnected, Disconnect and connect the mailbox again.
- The Inbox Triage Workspace isn't showing my latest emails: click Refresh on
  the email integration to re-sync, then reopen the Workspace.

Common questions:
- Can ORCA see my email password? No. Sign-in is handled by Microsoft or Google
  in their own window. ORCA is granted permission to work with your inbox, not
  your password, and you can disconnect at any time.
- Does connecting my inbox send my email to a third party? No. Your inbox is
  processed inside your own Safe Zone, and your data is not used to train
  third-party models.
- Do I need to be an administrator? You can connect your own mailbox, but your
  administrator may need to approve ORCA's access the first time.

## Safe Zone

The trust framework that anchors the brand. Available at:
https://orcaopti.ai/safe-zone

Safe Zone is a visible badge at the top of Opti Assist that shows users, in
plain English, how safe what they are currently doing is on a 1 to 5 scale.

- **Level 1 Secured.** Signed in with a Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace
  work account. Identity is sorted, every action is logged. If the chat is with
  an outside AI (ChatGPT or Claude on their own apps), the badge says so.
- **Level 2 Sovereign.** Using an ORCA model. Australian-built,
  Australian-hosted, not retained by anyone outside ORCA. The everyday
  resting place for most ORCA users.
- **Level 3 Guarded.** Sovereign chat with ORCA Opti AI Guardian at the
  Essential level. Personal info hidden, common AI tricks blocked, dodgy
  questions stopped.
- **Level 4 Hardened.** Sovereign chat with AI Guardian at Enhanced. Catches
  the trickier attacks that Essential may miss.
- **Level 5 Fortified.** Sovereign chat with AI Guardian at Maximum.

The principle is honesty: the badge always shows the weakest part of what
is happening right now, not the best feature the customer happens to own.

Above the standard scale:

- **ORCA-Private.** Dedicated Australian Azure tenancy in the customer's own
  environment. Talk-to-us.
- **ORCA-Classified.** Defence-grade infrastructure, accredited for
  classified material from PROTECTED through TOP SECRET. Aligned to the ISM
  and DISP. Air-gapped, secure-room, and cleared-people-only options.

## Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace

ORCA Opti meets businesses on the identity they already use. Users sign in
with their existing Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace work account (Microsoft
personal accounts are also supported). On Microsoft 365, the platform respects
M365 permissions across SharePoint, OneDrive and Entra automatically on every
interaction; the same standard of identity and access handling applies on
Google Workspace. Processing happens in ORCA Opti's sovereign Australian
environment by default. Customers who require processing inside their own
Microsoft 365 or Azure tenancy do so on the ORCA-Private tier.

## Frameworks supported

Pre-built compliance packs available across ISO 27001, ISO 9001, ISO 42001,
Essential Eight, DISP, NDIS Practice Standards, PSPF, DSPF, SOC 2, NIST CSF,
NIST 800-171, PCI DSS, HIPAA (en-US), UK GDPR / Data Protection Act 2018,
Cyber Essentials, NIS Regulations (en-GB), DPDP Act, CERT-In, RBI, SEBI
frameworks (en-IN), LFPDPPP (en-MX). Industry-specific deep dives across
defence, healthcare, financial services, telecommunications, mining,
building and construction, professional services, government, education,
NDIS, SME, critical infrastructure, energy, logistics.

## Healthcare (https://orcaopti.ai/healthcare)

Governed AI for Australian healthcare, aged care and disability service
providers. Clinicians and administrators use AI inside the organisation's own
Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace tenant, on Australian-hosted infrastructure.
Prompts are not sent to third-party AI providers and are not used to train
models. Every query is logged as a governance record.

Why it matters: health information is sensitive information under the Privacy
Act 1988, and Australian Privacy Principle 8 places accountability on the
organisation when personal information is disclosed to an overseas recipient.
Consumer AI tools generally process prompts offshore and keep no record of what
staff submitted, which is difficult to reconcile with those obligations.

Frameworks relevant to this sector: NDIS Practice Standards, ISO 27001,
Essential Eight, ISO 42001, ISO 9001. ORCA Opti maps evidence to each
continuously rather than at audit time, and produces a readiness report with
scores by domain and prioritised remediation steps.

Shadow AI: AI Guardian inspects prompts before they reach a model, including on
public AI tools, and blocks patient data, credentials and policy breaches
before they leave the organisation.

## Pricing

- **Opti Assist Free**: free forever. One user. 100,000 credits per month.
  Frontier AI models inside Safe Zone. Permissions enforced.
  No data training, no external logging. Internal audit trail. ISO 42001
  governance built in. Sign in: https://portal.orcaopti.ai
- **Opti Assist Solo**: A$29.95 / US$19.95 / £16.95 / €18.95 / MX$399 per
  month (localised per region; India billed in USD). Full toolset including
  Pearls, Workflows, Agents. 200,000 credits. SharePoint and OneDrive
  access. Pay monthly, no lock-in.
- **Opti Assist Teams**: A$149.95 / US$99.95 / £79.95 / €89.95 / MX$1,999 per
  month. 5 Navigators, 10 Standard Users, 500,000 tokens per month. 15-person
  team on one platform.
- **Enterprise**: talk to us.
- **ORCA-Private**: dedicated Australian Azure tenancy. Talk to us.
- **ORCA-Classified**: defence-grade. Talk to us.

## Country sites

- **Australia (canonical):** https://orcaopti.ai/
- **United States:** https://orcaopti.ai/en-us
- **United Kingdom:** https://orcaopti.ai/en-gb
- **India:** https://orcaopti.ai/en-in
- **Mexico:** https://orcaopti.ai/en-mx

## Press coverage (indicative)

- iTWire (Australia, 2 June 2026): "Australian startup releases free AI as
  data sovereignty crackdown looms"
- SecurityBrief Australia, ChannelLife Australia, eCommerceNews Australia,
  IT Brief Australia, CFOtech Australia (2 June 2026): "Orca Opti launches
  free AI governance tool for Australia"
- The Australian Financial Review BOSS Most Innovative Companies 2026
  (22 October 2026): ORCA Opti won gold in the Health services category
  and won the Micro company category (20 or fewer employees)
- Australian Financial Review (4 February 2026): feature on AI-proof
  careers including Kathryn Giudes
- CFOtech Australia, AIThority (February 2026): "ORCA Opti plots global AI
  growth and 2027 IPO roadmap"
- 2026 Australian AI Awards: ORCA Opti named finalist in the Best Use
  of Agentic AI (Start Up) category; winners announced 30 October 2026
  (September 2026)
- 2026 Women Leading Tech Awards: Kathryn Giudes named finalist in the
  Entrepreneur / Founder category (March 2026)

## Articles and press

Recent long-form articles and press pickups, newest first. Full index at
[llms.txt](https://orcaopti.ai/llms.txt).

### Case studies

- **STAT: when compliance is the product.** (9 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/case-studies/stat-grc-foundation
  STAT's compliance is its product. It stood up ISO 27001, NIST CSF and SOC 2
  with ORCA Opti in under a month, and now answers partner security
  questionnaires that used to run 50 questions deep in single digits.
- **South Coast Renal, now AOVO Clinical Trials: the answers, and the money, hidden in the documents.** (9 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/case-studies/south-coast-renal-aovo-clinical-trials
  A nephrology clinical-research site used ORCA Opti Assist to cut document
  workflows from 30 to 45 minutes down to under 5, with an audit trail that
  builds itself, then used the same approach to surface tens of thousands of
  dollars in unclaimed trial billing.
- **DNH Logistics: securing Australia's supply chains.** (9 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/case-studies/dnh-logistics-secure-supply-chains
  DNH Logistics on why defence and pharmaceutical supply chains need
  compliance-led, standards-aligned operations, and ledger-based custody proof
  that items are genuine, from cradle to grave.
- **Charlie the Virtual Veteran, State Library of Queensland.** (20 November 2025)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/case-studies/charlie-the-virtual-veteran-chatbot
  A public AI chatbot was jailbroken within 24 hours of launch. ORCA Opti AI
  Guardian red-teamed and hardened it so it could stay public and stay in
  character.

### Insights

- **You can control AI and get the productivity wins: putting governance and
  security around the AI your business uses.** (22 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/insights/control-what-you-can-ai-governance-security-layers
  You cannot govern the frontier model, but you can govern the five layers you
  put around it: where the AI runs, what goes in and out, what it is allowed to
  do, how it is governed, and whether you can prove it holds. How each layer
  works, and where the other options stop short.
- **ORCA for Microsoft 365: what the Configuration Analyzer checks, how to run
  it, and where it stops.** (2 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/insights/orca-for-microsoft-365-configuration-analyzer
- **Most AI projects fail in production. Our research on why points somewhere
  most leaders haven't looked.** (17 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/insights/why-most-ai-projects-fail-in-production
  New Sinch research surveying 2,527 senior decision-makers reveals that more
  governance maturity correlates with more rollbacks, not fewer. The real
  answer is somewhere else.
- **Why we built ORCA Opti on Microsoft 365. And why that's not where the
  story ends.** (15 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/insights/why-we-built-on-microsoft-365-and-why-thats-not-where-the-story-ends
  Choosing Microsoft 365 was a deliberate security decision, not a default.
  Now ORCA Opti carries that same standard to a second platform, Google
  Workspace.
- **Don't Rent Your Resilience** (15 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/insights/don-t-rent-your-resilience
  Depending on a single AI provider is a risk: that model can be switched off
  without warning, taking your history with it. The case for sovereign,
  portable AI.
- **What an AI compliance framework can and can't do for you** (11 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/insights/what-an-ai-compliance-framework-can-and-cant-do
  ISO 42001, NIST AI RMF, the EU AI Act and AS 8005 are all useful. None of
  them, on their own, makes your AI use safer. Where the real work happens.
- **Introducing Safe Zone: how safe is your AI chat, really?** (3 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/insights/introducing-safe-zone-five-honest-levels-of-ai-protection
  Safe Zone is a badge at the top of Opti Assist that tells you, in plain
  English, how safe what you're doing is on a scale of 1 to 5.
- **Their AI, Their Terms, Your Data** (5 May 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/insights/their-ai-their-terms-your-data
  An executive briefing for business leaders on the realities of data
  protection when using AI.

### Press

- **ORCA Opti wins gold and the Micro-company title at the 2026 AFR BOSS Most Innovative Companies** (22 October 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/orca-opti-afr-most-innovative-companies-2026
  The Australian Financial Review named ORCA Opti a double winner in its BOSS
  Most Innovative Companies 2026: gold in the Health services category, and
  winner of the Micro company category (20 or fewer employees) across all
  sectors. The feature by technology editor Paul Smith highlighted Opti Assist
  and AI Guardian, and early customer South Coast Renal (now AOVO Clinical
  Trials) reclaiming up to 22 hours of specialist time a week.
- **ORCA Opti named finalist for Best Use of Agentic AI at the 2026 Australian AI Awards** (29 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/orca-opti-finalist-2026-australian-ai-awards-agentic-ai
  ORCA Opti is a finalist in the Best Use of Agentic AI (Start Up) category
  at the 2026 Australian AI Awards, presented by AI Daily. Winners are
  announced at the gala in Sydney on 30 October 2026.
- **SMB Tech: HealthTech STAT builds a GRC foundation in under a month with ORCA Opti** (24 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/smb-tech-stat-grc-foundation
  SMB Tech's organic coverage of STAT, an Australian compliance-technology
  startup, standing up a full governance, risk and compliance foundation in
  under a month with ORCA Opti.
- **Health Tech World: STAT builds a GRC foundation in under a month with ORCA Opti** (24 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/htworld-stat-grc-foundation
  Health Tech World on compliance-tech startup STAT building a full governance,
  risk and compliance foundation in under a month with ORCA Opti.
- **In AI Today: HealthTech STAT builds a GRC foundation in under a month with ORCA Opti** (24 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/in-ai-today-stat-grc-foundation
  In AI Today on STAT standing up a governance, risk and compliance foundation
  in under a month with ORCA Opti.
- **CFOtech Australia: STAT builds compliance setup in under a month with ORCA Opti** (24 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/cfotech-stat-compliance-setup
  CFOtech Australia on STAT building a full compliance setup in under a month
  with ORCA Opti, framed for finance leaders on cost and speed.
- **IT Brief Australia: STAT builds compliance setup in under a month with ORCA Opti** (24 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/itbrief-au-stat-compliance-setup
  IT Brief Australia on STAT standing up its full compliance setup in under a
  month with ORCA Opti.
- **SecurityBrief Australia: STAT builds compliance setup in under a month with ORCA Opti** (24 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/security-brief-au-stat-compliance-setup
  SecurityBrief Australia on STAT building a full compliance setup in under a
  month with ORCA Opti.
- **SMB Tech: AOVO cuts core clinical-trial workflows from 45 minutes to under five with ORCA Opti** (24 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/smb-tech-aovo-clinical-workflows
  SMB Tech's organic coverage of AOVO Clinical Trials cutting core workflows
  from up to 45 minutes to under five with ORCA Opti.
- **In AI Today: AOVO cuts core clinical-trial workflows from 45 minutes to under five with ORCA Opti** (24 September 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/in-ai-today-aovo-clinical-workflows
  In AI Today on clinical research facility AOVO cutting core workflows from up
  to 45 minutes to under five minutes with ORCA Opti.
- **Dynamic Business: What cyber incident response steps should businesses have ready?** (19 August 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/dynamic-business-cyber-incident-response
  Kathryn Giudes joined Dynamic Business's Let's Talk series on incident
  response, arguing that governance written for the annual audit will not help
  in the first hour of an incident, and that shadow AI is now part of what
  organisations are responding to.
- **KBI Media: ORCA Opti launches free governed AI tool as agentic security risks accelerate** (18 August 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/kbi-media-free-governed-ai-agentic-risks
  KBI Media covered the launch of ORCA Opti Assist Free against the rise of
  agentic AI, with the takeaway that as agents begin acting autonomously the
  question shifts from which platform has the most features to whose
  infrastructure you can trust.
- **AFR: What directors need to know and do about frontier AI risks** (30 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/afr-directors-frontier-ai-risks
  The Australian Financial Review's Agnes King placed Kathryn Giudes among the
  expert voices on the Five Eyes frontier-AI alert, alongside Palo Alto
  Networks, Mallesons and the AICD.
- **SecurityBrief Australia: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/security-brief-au-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **SecurityBrief Asia: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/security-brief-asia-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **SecurityBrief India: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/security-brief-in-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **SecurityBrief New Zealand: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/security-brief-nz-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **IT Brief Australia: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/itbrief-au-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **IT Brief Asia: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/itbrief-asia-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **IT Brief India: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/itbrief-in-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **IT Brief New Zealand: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/itbrief-nz-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **eCommerceNews Australia: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/ecommercenews-au-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **eCommerceNews Asia: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/ecommercenews-asia-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **eCommerceNews India: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/ecommercenews-in-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **eCommerceNews New Zealand: AI agents force enterprises to rethink infrastructure and governance** (16 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/ecommercenews-nz-ai-agents-force-enterprises
- **CRN Australia: agentic 'Saaspocalypse' to rewrite software buying rules** (15 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/crn-agentic-saaspocalypse-gartner
- **iTWire: AI Appreciation Day 2026, the B2B enterprise innovators leading the way** (10 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/itwire-ai-appreciation-day-2026
- **In AI Today: AI Appreciation Day 2026, celebrating B2B enterprise innovation** (9 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/in-ai-today-ai-appreciation-day-2026
- **KBI Media: Australian startup releases free AI as data sovereignty crackdown looms** (3 July 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/kbi-media-opti-assist-free-data-sovereignty
- **Women Love Tech: ORCA Opti founder featured among executives leading the
  future of AI in B2B tech** (22 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/women-love-tech-women-executives-leading-b2b-ai
- **Tech Partner News: Brisbane-based ORCA Opti releases AI governance
  assistant** (12 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/techpartner-news-orca-opti-releases-ai-governance-assistant
- **AIThority: ORCA Opti releases free AI as data sovereignty crackdown
  looms** (10 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/aithority-opti-assist-free-data-sovereignty
- **In AI Today: Australian startup releases free AI as data sovereignty
  crackdown looms** (3 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/in-ai-today-opti-assist-free-data-sovereignty
- **iTWire: Australian startup releases free AI as data sovereignty crackdown
  looms** (3 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/itwire-opti-assist-free-data-sovereignty
- **Startup Scaleup: Australian startup releases free AI as data sovereignty
  crackdown looms** (3 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/startup-scaleup-opti-assist-free-data-sovereignty
- **CFOtech: Orca Opti launches free AI governance tool for Australia**
  (2 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/cfotech-orca-opti-launches-free-ai-governance
- **ChannelLife: Orca Opti launches free AI governance tool for Australia**
  (2 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/channellife-orca-opti-launches-free-ai-governance
- **eCommerceNews: Orca Opti launches free AI governance tool for Australia**
  (2 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/ecommercenews-orca-opti-launches-free-ai-governance
- **IT Brief: Orca Opti launches free AI governance tool for Australia**
  (2 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/itbrief-orca-opti-launches-free-ai-governance
- **SecurityBrief: Orca Opti launches free AI governance tool for Australia**
  (2 June 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/security-brief-orca-opti-launches-free-ai-governance
- **Dynamic Business: what SMEs should know before deploying AI** (13 May 2026)
  https://orcaopti.ai/resources/press/dynamic-business-deploying-ai-in-smes

## Founder

**Kathryn Giudes**, Founder and Managing Director, ORCA Opti.

Background: enterprise security and risk at Microsoft, Amazon, and
ASX-listed environments. Board roles across multiple Australian tech and
energy companies. Personal site: https://www.kathryngiudes.com

## Contact

- General contact: https://orcaopti.ai/contact
- Book a walkthrough: https://orcaopti.ai/contact
- Reseller / channel partner: https://orcaopti.ai/resellers
- Invest (wholesale, sophisticated and professional investors only, under s708 of Australia's Corporations Act — not for retail investors): https://orcaopti.ai/invest
- Customer portal: https://portal.orcaopti.ai