This biographical article is written like a résumé .(May 2024) |
Dean Drako | |
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Alma mater |
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Occupation | Parallel Entrepreneur |
Board member of | |
Website | Linked in |
Dean Drako is an American businessman and entrepreneur who has started more than five companies. Drako was founder, president and CEO of Barracuda Networks [1] from 2003 to July 2012. Drako is currently President and CEO of Eagle Eye Networks, [2] [3] IC Manage and Drako Motors. He is also chairman of Brivo. [4]
He graduated with a BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan and an MS in Electrical Engineering from UC Berkeley. [5] As of 2020, Drako is a holder of 53 patents, including patents on video streaming, video storage, video analytics, digital image processing, network security & protocols, digital circuits, biochemical assays, and electric automobiles. [6]
In 1982, Drako founded his first company, which sold a bulletin board system software package called T-net, used to share messages via modems. Drako used the profits to fund his college education. [7] [8]
In 1992, Drako founded Design Acceleration, Inc, served as its CEO, [9] and sold it to Cadence Design Systems in 1999. [10] Drako was also founder and CEO of Boldfish and Velosel; [11] Boldfish was acquired by Siebel Systems in 2003. [12] In 2003 Drako founded IC Manage, [13] where he continues to be president and CEO. [14]
Drako has written a number of articles on open source, big data, and system on chip design. [15] [16] [17] [18]
Drako is a frequently invited speaker and contributor on the topic of entrepreneurship, including by UC Berkeley, [19] [20] [21] University of Michigan, [22] ISPD, [23] and Forbes. [24] [25]
Also in 2003, Drako founded Barracuda Networks and introduced their email spam and virus appliance product line. [26] [27] Other Barracuda product lines launched during Drako's tenure were: web filters, [28] load balancers, [29] email archiving, [30] and digital PBXs. [31]
Drako executed six acquisitions by Barracuda Networks: In 2007, NetContinuum, an application controller company; [32] in 2008, BitLeap, a provider of cloud-based backup services, [33] and 3SP, an SSL and VPN company; [34] in 2009, Yosemite Technologies, for incremental backup of applications; [35] a controlling interest in phion AG, an Austria-based public enterprise-class firewalls company, [36] and Purewire Inc, a software as a service (SaaS) cloud-based web filtering and security company. [37]
Drako contributed to or supported 16 different open source projects while running Barracuda including Valgrind, Apache, and the Free Software Foundation. [38]
Barracuda was ranked #2 by Glassdoor in 2011, with Drako receiving an 88% approval rating. [39] Drako resigned from Barracuda Networks in July 2012 to found Eagle Eye Networks, while continuing to serve on Barracuda's board of directors until 2014. [40] At the time of Drako’s resignation, Barracuda stated it was profitable, generating hundreds of millions in annual revenue, close to 30% year-over-year growth since inception, and had surpassed 150,000 customers. [41] [42]
In 2003, Drako also co-founded [43] IC Manage, which provides Design & IP Management, Big Data Analytics, and high performance computing Scale Out I/O & Cloud Bursting software. He continues to serve as President and CEO. [44]
In July 2012, Drako founded Eagle Eye Networks, a cloud-based video security company, and serves as its CEO. [45] [46]
In January 2014, Drako formally launched Eagle Eye Networks and introduced its cloud-managed video surveillance system. Eagle Eye’s goal was “to do for video surveillance what Dropbox did for file sharing by making video more available and far easier to use.” [47] [48] Drako has been credited with establishing the concept of ‘true cloud’ in the physical security industry, to emphasize the differences between applications designed specifically for the cloud and legacy-design applications being run on a cloud-hosted virtual server. [49]
In 2019 Eagle Eye Networks ranked #133 on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 list of fastest growing technology companies in North America, with 936% growth from 2015 to 2018. [50] [51] In 2020, Eagle Eye Networks ranked #187 on the Deloitte Technology Fast 500 list, with 652% growth from 2016 to 2019. [52]
In 2021, Eagle Eye Networks acquired artificial intelligence company Uncanny Vision, with a stated goal to accelerate delivering practical AI-based analytics to businesses. [53] In 2022, Eagle Eye announced AI video search enabling customers to type in descriptions and then narrow results down by date, time, location, or camera. [54]
In 2023, Eagle Eye Networks raised $100M in financing; Drako continues to hold the majority share of the company. [55]
Drako acquired Brivo, [56] a provider of cloud-based physical access control systems, in June 2015, and is serving as Brivo's Chairman. Brivo will sell its cloud-based access control systems along with Eagle Eye’s cloud-based security camera system, although the companies will continue to operate as separate entities. [57] In March 2020, Brivo announced that it acquired Parakeet as part of its expansion into smart buildings. [58] [59] In November 2022, Brivo closed long-term senior secured credit facility of $75 million with Runway Growth Capital. [60] In 2023, Brivo raised $92M in financing, with Drako continuing to hold a majority share of the company. [61]
Drako is co-founder [62] and CEO of Drako Motors, an electric sports car software platform provider, which on August 6, 2015 announced its first product, the Drako DriveOS, a single VCU (vehicle control unit) operating system which controls all four wheels independently. [63] In June 2019, Drako Motors pre-announced their Drako GTE electric quad-motor supercar, claiming speeds of up to 206 MPH and 1200 horsepower. [64] [65] [66] [67] In August 2019, Drako Motors formally launched the all-electric production Drako GTE. [68] [69] In November 2022, Drako Motors launched the Drako Dragon all-electric luxury SUV, with 2,000 HP and 200+ mph maximum speed, quad motor powertrain, and two gullwing doors. [70] [71]
In December 2016, Drako acquired LivingTree, a K-12 family engagement platform provider. [72] The acquisition was described as a "multimillion-dollar investment." [73] LivingTree provides a secure, community-wide platform for educators and parents to engage, independent of language preference, and is stated to address directives set by the Every Student Succeeds Act. [74]
Drako founded Swift Sensors, a cloud-based wireless sensor company, in May 2015. In Dec 2016, Drako formally launched Swift Sensors and introduced its cloud wireless sensor system. [75] Swift Sensors’ goal is to eliminate the pain and cost of Internet of Things sensing applications by offering a unified solution that requires no programming skills or technical expertise. [76] Drako will serve as the company's Executive Chairman. [77]
In 2015, Drako created the PermRecord Foundation with the stated purpose "to ensure the preservation of materials placed in its trust." [78] This foundation contracted out to a commercial company, Permrecord, Inc., also founded by Drako, for its programming services. [78] By 2019 this mission had evolved "to preserve and provide perpetual access to the digital legacy of all people for the historical and educational benefit of future generations." [79] The foundation claims public charity status, but its public support percentage is zero, and it is completely controlled by its sole member (Dean Drako). [79] The foundation does not appear to have any perpetual means to accomplish its mission, subsisting on occasional grants from Drako. [79] The foundation's website hides its legal name and charity registration number under a "Brand Assets" page, but refers to itself under the DBA "Permanent Legacy Foundation". [80] Its home page promises "We invest your contributions into a nonprofit endowment" but there is no record of that endowment in its public accounting records. [79]
In 1984, Drako won finalist in the Westinghouse Science Talent Search for his solar energy research. [81]
In 2007, Drako was named Entrepreneur of the Year for Northern California for Networking and Communications by Ernst & Young. [82]
In 2011, during Drako's tenure as CEO, Barracuda Networks was ranked #2 of the 2011 Best Tech Co's to Work For in 2011 by Business Insider. [83]
In 2012, Drako was elected to the Board of Directors of the Electronic Design Automation Consortium board. [84]
Since 2012 Drako has served on the University of Michigan Advisory council. [85]
In 2014, Drako was selected as Keynote speaker for UC Berkeley Engineering Week, where he reviewed his 5 principles of entrepreneurship. [86] During the keynote, he stated his favorite business principle was keeping customers happy. [87]
In 2014, Goldman Sachs named Dean Drako as one of the 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs of 2014. [88]
In 2016, Dean was commencement speaker at University of Michigan Engineering School. [89]
In 2022 and 2023, Drako was named Entrepreneur of the Year regional finalist by Ernst & Young. [90] [91]
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