As one of the world’s most active corporate VC’s, Cisco believes that keeping a pulse on the start-up ecosystem is one of the best ways to understand what’s next in technology. Our goal is to then harness these insights from external innovation and bring them to our customers. That’s why at this year’s Cisco Live Barcelona, we’re inviting eight of the most prominent start-ups in our portfolio to our Cisco Investments Village to share their unique technology solutions and perspective on future market disruptions across critical domains:
Infrastructure
Even though the trend toward automation is nothing new, industries are still exploring how to apply it to their industry. Here’s where Puppet is making headway—the company has developed automation tools for highly skilled yet repetitive tasks commonly performed by DevOps teams. Puppet’s automation solution can take on challenging responsibilities like deploying updates to virtual machines, freeing up DevOps to focus on innovative solutions for the business.
Data Center
Data centers are the traditional solution for data storage and retention, but companies need data to do more, such as leveraging it for other technologies like automation and artificial intelligence. Simply put, physical data centers can’t keep up. However, Avi Networks provides scalable multi-cloud application delivery services that process data with speed and security. The Avi Networks platform empowers companies with the flexibility to adopt new technologies.
Data is the lifeblood of any technology solution, but when multiple parties access the same data, it increases the risk of fragmentation. Companies need a solution that accommodates the multiple uses of data for various product uses, from virtualization to cloud platforms and more. Cohesity found a way to make data accessible but also secure across an organization.
Public cloud platforms have long been the standard for deploying native-cloud apps in an on-premise environment, but they fall short of accommodating the various needs of development teams. That’s why many companies are looking to multi-cloud or hybrid cloud services. Stratoscale developed a solution that enables multi-cloud and hybrid applications and supports DevOps in enterprise environments.
While the cloud is widely considered as the new normal, some technologies are just starting to adopt its application. That’s the case of data storage. Ctera Networks is an example of a company that’s ahead of the curve. Its enterprise file software transforms legacy NAS into a scalable cloud-based storage system. Ctera’s clients include government agencies and global companies.
Cybersecurity
It’s become clear that companies need a comprehensive solution that identifies the internal and external threats to their business. Panaseer offers a cybersecurity solution that continuously checks the “cyber hygiene” of the organization, empowering the Chief Information Security Officer to quickly understand the problem, translate the issue to other business stakeholders, and take action on bridging security gaps.
While cybersecurity focuses on external threats, Business Risk Intelligence addresses broader security risks—supply chain integrity, physical security, fraud, and more. Flashpoint provides a platform and services that can quickly assess threats across the organization, from onboarding new vendors to technology implementation and more, which helps organizations enhance their intelligence operations and meet objectives more accurately and efficiently.
IoT
Internet of Things is becoming a mainstay in business operations, but IT professionals still have to tackle many obstacles that prevent their organization from fully optimizing the technology. Actility is a global leader in helping their partners leverage Low-Power Wide-Area Network (LPWAN) on any scale and enable solutions like geolocation and smart grid.
The Cisco Investments Village gives conference attendees the opportunity to meet startups providing value to Cisco’s innovation strategy. Tapping external partners like those in our Cisco portfolio can help you do more than tackle obstacles within your organization—it can offer a bird’s eye view of future market disruptions, an insight necessary to identifying external partners that can provide innovative solutions and accelerate growth. Come check out the village and sign up for a tour!
About the author: Jon Koplin joined Cisco Corporate Development in 2017 and leads the EMEAR team responsible for investments, joint ventures, and acquisitions. Previous to Cisco, Jon worked as an early-stage technology investor with European family offices. Before moving into the investment arena, Jon held senior operating roles at Google and Samsung in Europe and Asia. Early in his career, Jon worked in Silicon Valley and in startups and was part of the management team of NetBeans (acquired by Sun Microsystems).
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