HEAD-TO-HEAD · FACTS ONLY
Bay vs Harmonic: AI endpoint control facts side by side
Short answer
Bay describes 1 of the four product control types on the pages we read and Harmonic describes 2; they differ on on-device control, browser extension and AI or MCP gateway. On decisions, Bay decides on a tool call before it runs and Harmonic describes some control over tool calls. We do not score either; the right choice depends on the AI tools people use, your devices, your current stack and whether you block or guide.
By The Device Desk · Endpoint AI Finder · Published 2026-10-11
Desk research from public vendor pages read on 27 September and 11 October 2026. Profiles follow our published method; we did not run the products.
Vendor pages read September and October 2026 · updated 2026-10-13
Where do their controls sit?
- Filled or hatched marker: Bay
- Dashed teal ring: Harmonic, described
- DEV Filled marker: described on the product pages we read
- DEV Hatched marker: partly described (another component, a narrower scope, or method not detailed)
- DEV Dashed marker: not in our sources (it may exist; we did not find it)
What are the facts, side by side?
| Fact | Bay | Harmonic |
|---|---|---|
| Owner | None | None |
| Positioning | An endpoint-first control layer for AI agents, coding assistants and MCP servers on employee devices. Bay describes itself as a fully preventive, agentless platform that classifies, governs and prevents risks across every AI agent and tool on enterprise endpoints. | A data protection product for everyday AI use, sold as Explore, Guide and Command, covering browser extensions, desktop apps and CLI tools, MCP gateways and an API. |
| How it reaches devices | Deploys through your existing EDR or MDM, with no new agents and no new tools; Bay says it scans in minutes and exits cleanly. Source: Bay homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Rolls out through Intune, JAMF, Kandji or Group Policy. Source: Harmonic Security homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| On-device controlDiffers | DescribedInventories AI agents, MCP servers, tools, credentials and extensions on the device, and its Enforcer returns Allow, Ask or Deny locally on prompts, pre-tool calls and post-tool responses on supported agent surfaces. Delivered as Wave, an ephemeral binary that runs through your existing MDM or EDR. Policies can be scoped by agent, group, endpoint or device. Source: Bay blog: Ghostjacking (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 | Partly describedDeployment options include desktop apps and AI agents, rolled out through device management; the on-device component is not described in detail. Source: Harmonic Security pricing (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 |
| Browser extensionDiffers | Not in our sourcesNo browser extension is described. Bay's Application Control can allow or block browsers and extensions as applications, which is a device rule, not a control on what goes into browser AI. Source: Bay blog: Ghostjacking (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 | DescribedBrowser extensions are a listed surface, with block, warn or log actions. Source: Harmonic Security homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Network or SSE proxy | Not in our sourcesNot described on the pages we read. | Not in our sourcesNot described on the pages we read. |
| AI or MCP gatewayDiffers | Not in our sourcesNot described on the pages we read. | DescribedMCP gateways are a listed surface, and Harmonic Command governs at the MCP layer and at the tool surface. Source: Harmonic Security: Command · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Names the coding agents it covers | MatchesManaged settings for Claude Code, Codex and Claude Desktop lock permission rules, preserve managed hooks, restrict MCP servers and constrain plugin sources. Source: Bay blog: Ghostjacking, an AI agent attack (August 2026) · Read 27 Sep 2026 | MatchesThe Guide tier adds desktop AI apps and developer tools, naming Claude Code, GitHub Copilot, ChatGPT Desktop and Microsoft 365 Copilot. Source: Harmonic Security pricing (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 |
| Decides on a tool call before it runsDiffers | MatchesEvaluates prompts, pre-tool calls and post-tool responses and returns Allow, Ask or Deny locally, which Bay states takes under 4ms with no cloud round-trip, on supported agent surfaces. Source: Bay blog: Ghostjacking (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 | PartlyThe Command tier adds MCP client and server discovery, agent permissions for read, write and execute, and MCP server tool controls. Source: Harmonic Security pricing (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 |
| Controls what goes into browser AIDiffers | Not in our sources | MatchesBlock, warn or log on AI use in the browser. Source: Harmonic Security homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Rolls out through EDR or device management you run | MatchesDeploys through your existing EDR or MDM; no new agents. Source: Bay homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 | MatchesRolls out through Intune, JAMF, Kandji or Group Policy. Source: Harmonic Security homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Can warn or ask instead of only blocking | MatchesAsk is one of three answers, with Allow and Deny. Source: Bay homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 | MatchesWarn is one of three actions, with block and log. Source: Harmonic Security homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Can block an agent, tool or action | MatchesDeny stops an action. Rules cover MCP servers (an allow or block list, and per-tool rules for read, create, update, delete and execute), applications, CLIs, browsers, IDEs and extensions, credentials and files, network egress allow lists, and capability rules such as shell execution, package installation and cloud CLIs. Source: Bay blog: Ghostjacking (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 | MatchesBlock is one of three actions. Source: Harmonic Security homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Has a watch-only or simulation mode | MatchesSimulation Mode runs a rule without enforcing it. Source: Bay blog: Ghostjacking, an AI agent attack (August 2026) · Read 27 Sep 2026 | MatchesLog is one of three actions, for watching before enforcing. Source: Harmonic Security homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Records who or what took each actionDiffers | MatchesRecords who triggered an action, whether a human was involved, and the chain from prompt to system action. Source: Bay homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 | Not in our sources |
| Also covers SaaS, cloud or homegrown AIDiffers | Not in our sources | PartlyAn API is listed alongside device surfaces; SaaS or cloud agents are not described. Source: Harmonic Security homepage · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Has a public price or tiers (vendor site or marketplace)Differs | Not in our sources | PartlyNames three tiers (Explore, Guide, Command) on its pricing page, without prices. Source: Harmonic Security: pricing · Read 27 Sep 2026 |
| Built into | None | None |
| Works with | None in our sources | None in our sources |
| Price | Not published. Bay's site has a demo request and no pricing page (re-checked 11 October 2026). Source: Bay homepage (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 | Three named tiers (Explore, Guide, Command) with no prices; a full prompt audit log is an add-on on Guide and Command. Source: Harmonic Security pricing (re-read) · Read 11 Oct 2026 |
Where do they differ?
- On-device control: Bay describes it; Harmonic partly describes it.
- Browser extension: Bay is not in our sources; Harmonic describes it.
- AI or MCP gateway: Bay is not in our sources; Harmonic describes it.
- Decides on a tool call before it runs: Bay matches; Harmonic partly matches.
- Controls what goes into browser AI: Bay is not in our sources; Harmonic matches.
- Records who or what took each action: Bay matches; Harmonic is not in our sources.
- Also covers SaaS, cloud or homegrown AI: Bay is not in our sources; Harmonic partly matches.
- Has a public price or tiers (vendor site or marketplace): Bay is not in our sources; Harmonic partly matches.
Choose Bay if
- Your developers run coding agents with many MCP servers and you want a decision on each action before it runs
- You want to add AI agent control through the EDR or MDM you already run instead of rolling out another agent
Choose Harmonic if
- Your main risk is employees pasting sensitive data into AI tools and you would rather coach than block
- You manage devices with Intune, JAMF, Kandji or Group Policy
Which limits should you check?
Bay
- Endpoint only: no browser extension, network proxy or AI gateway is described, and nothing on SaaS or cloud-hosted AI apps.
- One of the smallest public footprints here: a single homepage, two blog posts, no documentation portal and no published pricing (re-checked 11 October 2026).
- Headline figures such as under 5 minutes to deploy, under 1% false positives and 100% of shadow AI discovered are Bay's own statements and have not been verified.
Harmonic
- Tier names only, no prices, and the full prompt audit log is an add-on.
- An activity record that separates a person from an agent is not described, and prompt injection protection is listed as coming soon.