Blackberry has bolstered its Internet of Things (IOT) security credentials by acquiring cybersecurity company Cylance.

The deal was “a giant step forward toward our goal of being the world’s largest and most trusted AI-cybersecurity company," said John Chen, Blackberry Executive Chairman and CEO.

Cylance’s "embeddable AI" doesn’t require threat signatures to defend against known and unknown threats. Cylance claims its technology protected medical devices in UK healthcare facilities from the WannaCry ransomware in 2017.

Blackberry will use Cylance’s technology in the development of its Blackberry Spark IOT communication platform.

The platform uses military-grade security to enable trusted communications between devices. That communication might include alerts sent by heart beat monitors to ventilators, or alerts sent by road infrastructure to vehicles.

Formerly known for its smartphones, Blackberry now describes its mission as "providing the technology that allows endpoints to trust one another, communicate securely, and maintain privacy."