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§ Private Profile · San Carlos, CA, USA
Developed analytic database systems and enterprise software for big data analytics and data warehousing, integrating SQL and MapReduce.
Key people at Aster Data.
Based in San Carlos, California, Aster Data developed enterprise software and analytic database systems for managing large-scale data warehousing and big data analytics. The company provided a massively parallel processing data warehouse that integrated MapReduce analytics directly with standard SQL queries, enabling applications to run where data was stored. The enterprise software was utilized by major corporate customers across the communications, retail, and technology sectors, including clients such as LinkedIn and MySpace. Prior to its exit, the software provider raised approximately $53 million in venture capital funding from prominent lead investors including Sequoia Capital and Institutional Venture Partners. In March 2011, the business was acquired by data warehousing corporation Teradata for $263 million, which implied a total valuation of approximately $295 million. Aster Data was founded in 2005 by Mayank Bawa, Tasso Argyros, and George Candea.
Aster Data Systems was a data management and analytics company that developed innovative database systems for handling large-scale, complex data analysis. Its core product, the ncluster platform (later evolving into Teradata Aster), enabled embedding analytics directly within the database engine, supporting SQL-MapReduce processing for multi-structured data in industries like insurance, communications, retail, financial services, media, and social networking[1][2][3][4]. This solved key challenges in big data processing by improving query performance, scalability, data loading, and graph analysis for applications such as fraud detection, social network analysis, and supply chain optimization[1][3][4]. Founded in 2005 in San Carlos, California (with operations in Redwood City), it achieved strong early growth through venture funding before being acquired by Teradata in March 2011, after which its technology powered Teradata's Aster Analytics portfolio[1][2][3].
Aster Data Systems was co-founded in 2005 by Stanford University graduate students George Candea, Mayank Bawa, and Tasso Argyros, who brought expertise in distributed systems and databases to address limitations in traditional data warehousing[2]. The idea emerged from academic research on scalable analytics, leading to the creation of a hybrid SQL-MapReduce engine that combined relational databases with advanced analytics. Early traction came quickly: the company secured $5 million in seed funding in 2005 from investors like First Round Capital, Sequoia Capital, Institutional Venture Partners, Cambrian Ventures, Jafco Ventures, and angels including Rajeev Motwani, Ron Conway, and David Cheriton[2]. Follow-on rounds of $17 million in 2009 and $30 million in 2010 fueled product development, earning recognition like a seventh-place ranking among venture-funded companies in 2011 and Argyros being named a World Economic Forum technology pioneer[2].
Aster Data rode the early big data wave in the late 2000s, bridging the gap between rigid relational databases (like PostgreSQL-based systems) and emerging Hadoop/MapReduce paradigms when analytics on unstructured data was exploding[1][2][4]. Its timing was ideal amid rising needs for real-time insights in retail, finance, and telecom, driven by market forces like data proliferation from social media and IoT precursors. By pioneering in-database analytics, it influenced the ecosystem, paving the way for modern data lakehouses and platforms like Trino/Starburst; post-acquisition, its tech extended to Teradata's R-language tools, Hadoop integrations, AppCenter, and cloud marketplaces (AWS in 2016, Azure in 2017), accelerating enterprise adoption of advanced analytics[2].
Aster Data's legacy endures through Teradata Aster Analytics, which continues evolving for hybrid cloud analytics, IoT, and AI-driven workloads amid trends like data mesh and real-time processing. As big data matures into AI-era demands, its foundational innovations position Teradata to capitalize on unified data architectures. Looking ahead, expect deeper integrations with generative AI and edge computing, amplifying Aster's early vision in an ecosystem now dominated by hyperscalers—proving how a 2005 startup reshaped enterprise analytics for decades.
Key people at Aster Data.