SpectroCloud Secures $75M to Assist Companies in Managing Their Kubernetes Deployments
Kubernetes, the widely-used open-source platform for managing containerized applications (software packages operating in isolated environments), has firmly established itself in the mainstream technology landscape. A recent survey revealed that 60% of organizations have implemented Kubernetes, and Gartner projects that over 90% of enterprises could utilize Kubernetes in production environments by 2026.
Nevertheless, managing Kubernetes remains a challenging task. According to a survey conducted by computing services company Civo, 54% of developers believe that the complexity of Kubernetes is hindering their organization’s progress.
This complexity has catalyzed the emergence of vendors like Spectro Cloud, which specializes in providing software solutions to simplify Kubernetes management. Spectro Cloud offers essential layers such as storage, networking, and security to facilitate the orchestration of Kubernetes deployments.
Founded in 2019 by Tenry Fu, who previously held positions as a staff architect at McAfee, staff engineer at VMware, and chief architect for Cisco’s cloud platform solutions, Spectro Cloud was launched with Gautam Joshi and Saad Malik. The trio had previously co-founded CliQr, a startup aimed at helping clients manage applications across hybrid cloud environments, which was acquired by Cisco in 2016 for $260 million.
Spectro Cloud’s solutions are compatible with on-premise, multi-cloud, and edge environments, giving the company a competitive advantage. According to Fu, the company does not restrict itself to a particular stack or Kubernetes distribution, allowing customers to tailor their solutions to meet their specific requirements.
“By offering one or more flexible and declarative ‘stacks’ for Kubernetes deployments, Spectro Cloud empowers enterprises to manage multi-cluster, multi-distro in various environments efficiently,” Fu shared with TechCrunch. “Our platform is engineered to scale, capable of managing tens of thousands of clusters.”
Competitors to Spectro Cloud include Akuity, Loft Labs, and IBM’s Kubecost. However, the company is attracting sufficient investor attention, with customers such as GE Healthcare, T-Mobile, Nokia, and the U.S. Air Force and Navy.
Fu noted that the public sector and defense represent significant growth opportunities.
“For the past two years, we have developed a product edition tailored for the public sector, and we have experienced considerable success,” he stated. “There is a substantial trend of cloud-native adoption within government, with every mobile entity—planes, tanks, ships—becoming edge locations.”
On Tuesday, Spectro Cloud announced a $75 million Series C funding round led by Goldman Sachs. This brings the company’s total funding to $160 million and its post-money valuation to $750 million. According to Fu, the new funds will be allocated to product development and expanding partnerships.
“Our focus areas include edge computing and AI, collaborating with hardware, storage, and cloud providers to elevate both virtual machines and GPUs to first-class citizens in Kubernetes,” Fu explained. “This alignment is crucial with the current industry trends toward unified management for virtual machines, containers, and AI workloads, streamlining the experience for developers.”
Spectro Cloud is also planning to expand its workforce, adding approximately 30 personnel to its existing team of around 200 by the end of the year.