Keika Sugiyama shapes the future of AI-driven cybersecurity products. As Associate Group Product Manager based in Singapore, she was the first product hire out of APAC and has rapidly expanded her scope to oversee both internal data platforms and customer-facing solutions. Her journey from managing auxiliary products to leading complex platform initiatives showcases the growth opportunities available to product leaders who embrace ownership and ambiguity. We spoke with Keika about building products across time zones, leveraging AI in daily work, and why she chose Abnormal as the place to grow her career.

First Product Hire in APAC

Keika joined Abnormal in mid-September as a Group Product Manager, making history as the first product hire out of APAC while the rest of the team consisted of engineers in Singapore and India.

"I was actually the first product hire out of APAC with the rest of us being engineers here," Keika explains. Initially, she was overseeing product for two teams: the SIEM and SOAR integrations team and the Graymail team, both supporting core inbound email security products.

Since then, her scope has expanded significantly. Now she also manages the Abnormal Data Platform, which serves as an internal data hub for product teams, as well as Search and Respond, which is more customer-facing.

"It's a fascinating balance. One part of my job involves enabling internal teams with a powerful data ecosystem, while the other is about delivering direct value to customers," she reflects.

The rapid expansion of her responsibilities illustrates how quickly opportunities grow at Abnormal when you demonstrate the ability to take ownership and deliver results.

Managing Products Across Three Time Zones

Because Keika is based in APAC while many stakeholders are in the US and UK, her schedule looks quite different from a traditional 9-to-5. She has developed a rhythm that maximizes collaboration while maintaining personal well-being.

Her mornings start at 8 AM with back-to-back meetings involving brainstorming product ideas, discussing technical feasibility, updating stakeholders, and gathering customer feedback. Midday becomes her "quiet work" time, where she focuses on documentation and deep thinking around product strategy.

"I also make sure to fit in a gym session in the middle of the day, which helps keep me balanced," she notes.

Her workday picks up again at night from 9 PM to midnight, when she has calls with East Coast teams and customers. While intense, she appreciates the flexibility that lets her structure her day around when she works best and when collaboration is most needed.

Why Category-Defining Companies Matter

The biggest reason Keika joined Abnormal was her belief that it is truly a category-defining company. Many companies build off existing models, tweaking them slightly to compete in the market. Abnormal, on the other hand, was different.

"Abnormal was AI-driven from day one. It was not an afterthought or a trendy add-on. That foundation was really compelling," she explains.

She also wanted to work for a company headquartered in the US, because that is where many truly innovative, category-creating products emerge. It felt like the right place to be if she wanted to help shape the future of technology.

What surprised her most since joining was discovering how many people are based in Singapore. When she was interviewing, she thought there were maybe a handful of people there. By the time she joined, there were over 30 people, which was a great surprise.

AI-Native Product Development

Abnormal has always been AI-native, and Keika uses AI for both technical and non-technical parts of her job. One recent example involved using AI for performance reviews.

"Writing feedback, especially constructive feedback, requires careful wording, so I used ChatGPT to help refine my messaging," she explains. "It's not that I didn't know what to say, but AI helped me make sure it was clear, professional, and well-structured."

She also experiments with AI tools like V0, which helps visualize product ideas without needing a full design team upfront. This is really useful when brainstorming new features because teams can iterate quickly before committing significant resources.

The company's generosity with access to AI tools stands out. Teams are encouraged to explore AI and emerging technologies, and the company pays for many of these tools so people can experiment freely.

Cross-Functional Product Collaboration

As a product manager, Keika collaborates constantly with engineers, marketing, GTM teams, legal, and more. A recent example is an upcoming Threat Intelligence project. After hearing customer feedback, she connected with the security team, GTM teams, and engineers to explore how they could improve the offering.

"The product needs to be more than just a copy of existing solutions. We want to reimagine how this should work in the future," she notes.

What makes collaboration unique at Abnormal is that much of it happens asynchronously on Slack, which helps bridge time zones and keeps discussions moving even when people are not all online at the same time.

This async-first approach enables her to work effectively across three time zones while maintaining the speed and quality that product development requires.

Remote-First Success

This is Keika's first remote role, and she really enjoys it. The flexibility is crucial, especially since she does not have a traditional 9-to-5 schedule.

"The flexibility is crucial, especially since I don't have a traditional 9-to-5 schedule," she explains.

In Singapore, teams make it a point to meet in person every other Wednesday at WeWork, even though it is optional. It is nice to have that live interaction, and it represents a thoughtful perk that Abnormal provides.

For global colleagues, she builds connections through casual Slack conversations. It might be as simple as noticing someone's cozy sweater and starting a conversation from there. Those small moments help maintain a sense of team culture across distances.

Innovation Without Chasing Trends

One thing that stands out about Abnormal is how generous the company is with access to tools for emerging technologies. However, in a product role, it is important not to just chase trends.

This approach ensures that product decisions serve customers rather than just implementing technology because it exists.

Advocacy and Self-Learning

For anyone considering joining Abnormal, Keika offers two key pieces of advice.

First, learn to advocate for yourself.

"At a remote company, people don't automatically see what you're working on, so you need to be proactive in sharing your impact," she explains.

Second, be comfortable with reading and writing extensively. Documentation and async communication are essential. There is a ton of information available, but you need to be willing to dive in, absorb it, and learn on your own.

The environment rewards people who lean into ownership and autonomy rather than waiting for detailed instructions.

Building the Future of Cybersecurity

Keika's expanded role from managing auxiliary products to overseeing internal platforms and customer-facing solutions reflects the growth opportunities available to product managers who demonstrate strong ownership and delivery.

Her experience balancing internal enablement with customer value creation provides valuable perspective on how products evolve in a fast-growing security company.

The combination of AI-native product development, remote-first collaboration, and category-defining innovation creates an environment where product managers can have significant impact on both technology and business outcomes.

Ready to drive product strategy that scales? Let's go.