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Key people at Datera.
Based in Sunnyvale, California, Datera was a technology company that developed Elastic Data Fabric software for block-access, scale-out, server-based storage running on standard x86 servers. The enterprise initially sold hardware storage appliances before transitioning to a software-only business model designed to bring hyperscale economics and automated operations to enterprise private clouds, public clouds, and service providers. During its operational lifespan, the enterprise secured at least $63.9 million in venture capital funding across multiple rounds from prominent institutional backers, including lead investor Khosla Ventures and corporate backer Samsung Ventures. The organization grew to employ more than 50 people by 2016 and later underwent significant leadership changes, including the appointment of Guy Churchward as chief executive officer in 2018, before ultimately entering liquidation in February 2021. Datera was originally founded in 2013 by Mark Fleischmann, Nicholas Bellinger, and Claudio Fleiner.
Key people at Datera.
Datera was an enterprise software company that developed a 100% software-defined storage platform for high-performance applications in private, hybrid, and public cloud environments.[2][1] It served large enterprises and cloud service providers by delivering elastic block and object storage with AI-driven automation, data orchestration, and consistent performance across standard servers from vendors like HPE, Dell, Cisco, and others, claiming up to 70% lower total cost of ownership.[1][3][2] The platform solved manual storage management challenges through intent-based policies, anomaly detection, and automatic optimization for transaction-intensive workloads on bare metal, VMs, or containers, enabling hyperscale economics in enterprise settings.[2][5][6]
Founded in 2013 in Santa Clara, California (initially Sunnyvale), Datera emerged from a team of experts in cloud, distributed storage, Linux, and hyperscale operations, including co-founders like Marc Fleischmann (CEO), Hal Woods (CTO), and Nic Bellinger (Chief Architect).[2][5] Fleischmann, with a Microsoft Azure and storage background, launched the company publicly in April 2016 after securing $40 million from investors like Kosa Ventures, Samsung Ventures, and others, aiming to revolutionize storage by shifting from hardware-driven to application-driven, autonomic models.[5] Early traction built on shipped products from team alumni at Microsoft Azure and NISA, focusing on software-defined storage that flips operational economics.[5][6]
Datera rode the software-defined storage (SDS) wave amid the shift to cloud-native, server-based architectures, addressing legacy silos and manual ops in hyperscale environments.[1][2][5] Timing aligned with rising container adoption, flash/NVMe proliferation, and hybrid cloud demands around 2016-2021, partnering with Intel, Samsung, and server leaders to enable dynamic data services.[1][6] It influenced the ecosystem by pioneering autonomic storage—application-driven over admin-driven—pushing competitors toward AI policy engines and multi-vendor flexibility, acquired by VMware in April 2021 to bolster its SDS portfolio for enterprise virtualization and cloud.[2]
Post-acquisition by VMware in 2021, Datera's tech likely integrated into broader VMware offerings like vSAN, enhancing AI-orchestrated storage for hybrid clouds amid ongoing SDS growth.[2] Trends like edge computing, AI workloads, and composable infra will shape its legacy, evolving influence through VMware's Tanzu ecosystem toward fully autonomic, multi-cloud data services. This positions it as a foundational player in flipping infrastructure from cost centers to application enablers, much like its original mission to deliver hyperscale to every enterprise cloud.[5][1]
