Exostellar, a cloud spend optimization startup, recently raised $15 million in a Series A funding round led by Celesta and Cambium Capital, with Alpha Intelligence Capital also participating. This funding boosts Exostellar’s valuation to $40 million, positioning it for further growth.
Introduction to Exostellar
Founded in 2018 by Cornell computer science faculty members Hakim Weatherspoon, Robbert van Renesse, and former Ph.D. researcher Zhiming Shen, Exostellar specializes in cloud computing. Its mission is to help companies optimize cloud spending and cut infrastructure costs.
The Problem of Cloud Spend Management
Cloud services spending is projected to hit $1.1 trillion by 2026, driven by increased demand for compute-heavy technologies like AI. But managing cloud spend remains a challenge, with around 82% of companies finding it difficult to manage, leading to self-estimated wasted cloud spend of 28%.
Exostellar’s Position in the Market
Exostellar is a leading player in the cloud spend optimization market, also known as FinOps. Its software uses dynamic allocation and real-time workload movement to optimize cloud spend, making it suitable for various use cases.
Exostellar’s Software and Functionality
The software predicts cloud instance shutdowns, allowing organizations to plan workload movements strategically and consolidate instances to reduce costs. It also eliminates the trade-off between on-demand, reserved, and spot instance pricing, helping organizations optimize costs.
Competition in the Cloud Spend Management Market
The cloud spend management market, or FinOps, is expanding and estimated to reach $2.75 billion by 2028. Exostellar faces competition from companies like Spot.io, Cast AI, CloudHealth, Apptio, nOps, and Zesty.
Exostellar’s Growth Strategy
To grow, Exostellar plans to expand to additional cloud platforms like Azure, Google Cloud, and IBM Cloud. It also intends to introduce GPU instance support to cater to compute-intensive workloads.
Opportunities and Challenges for Exostellar
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated cloud adoption, increasing the demand for cloud application servers. Many organizations waste cloud spend due to over-provisioning and asset fragmentation.
Funding and Growth of Exostellar
With $15 million in recent funding, Exostellar is well-positioned to develop its software, expand its customer base, and solidify its position in the cloud spend optimization market.
In conclusion, Exostellar’s recent funding round underscores the demand for cloud spend optimization solutions. With its innovative software, Exostellar is poised to capitalize on this demand by offering dynamic allocation, real-time workload movement, and cost-effective cloud solutions.
