The Silicon Review ^Asia

Cisco Systems announced on August 21^st that it plans to acquire Springpath, based in Sunnyvale, California. Springpath has risen to prominence with its unique software and data platforms which eliminate the need for network storage and provides other data management and optimisation capabilities. The company has been instrumental in developing a distributed file system intended for hyperconverged architecture.

"This acquisition is a meaningful addition to our data center portfolio and aligns with our overall transition to providing more software-centric solutions," stated Rob Salvagno, Cisco's VP of business development.

Cisco is reportedly buying Springpath for $320 m and intends to employ the software for their HyperFlex hyperconverged products. Following the announcement of the deal, Springpath stopped the marketing and selling its HALO software as a gesture of its involvement with Cisco.

Cisco has recently acquired MindMeld, a startup which built an AI platform for enterprises. It was immediately followed by the acquisition of key talent and technology from Saggezza, a data analytics company. It competes with leading companies like Nutanix, Dell, Hewlett Packard and Lenovo in the HCI market.

As Cisco continues to advance towards software encompassed, cloud-oriented business, it looks forward to utilise the new software products to help strengthen its data center portfolio and its computing business. The deal is expected to close in 2018 and the Springpath team is all set to join Cisco led by Liz Centoni.