Cohesity is an AI-powered data management and security ecosystem. The company is one of the top competitors in its industry, offering clients a mix of advanced products and a reputable history. To date, Cohesity clients have paid zero ransom fees, and the company now deals with 85% of the Fortune 100.
All of these factors have made Cohesity stock a high-demand asset. However, the company has not issued an exact IPO date. As such, the only way to obtain Cohesity shares is via pre-IPO channels. Here’s what you need to know.
What Is Cohesity and Why Is It Important?
Cohesity entered the market in 2013 and is headquartered in San Jose, California, with offices in India and Ireland. The company’s founder Mohit Aron, also the co-founder of Nutanix, created Cohesity to provide businesses with a higher level of security via software and hardware solutions. Since its launch, Cohesity has managed to carve out a niche in the +110B data management sector, which is predicted to grow 12.4% annually from now until 2030.
Cohesity began its march to success in 2015 with the release of its first product, called DataPlatform. From there, the company made several acquisitions that expanded its products, offerings, and market penetration. In 2019, Cohesity acquired Imanis Data, and in 2024, the firm completed its long-awaited Veritas Technologies acquisition. Notably, the company paused its IPO plans filed in 2021 to complete this acquisition and await optimal market conditions.
Source – Cohesity
Cohesity remains a pioneering effort in the market, which it helped create. Cohesity Gaia AI operates as one of the first generative AI-powered enterprise search assistants. The system uses the ability to conduct real-time indexing and querying of data utilizing a simplistic interface combined with Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG) AI and large language models (LLMs).
Cohesity Turing opens the door to large-scale AI adoption. The product integrates a collection of AI technologies, which users can access via the multi-cloud data management interface. Other high-demand products include an air-gapped digital vault called FortKnox and an AI-driven cyber recovery solution named RecoveryAgent. Together, these products position Cohesity ideally for large-scale enterprise-grade AI adoption.
Historical Funding Rounds
Summary of Cohesity Funding:
- Total Funding: Cohesity secured $810M over 6 funding rounds
- Largest Round: Cohesity’s largest funding round secured $250M in April 2020.
- Investors: A total of 49 institutional investors back Cohesity
- Latest Round: The latest funding round raised $150M and was a Series F round held on March 18, 2024
Funding Rounds Breakdown:
- 2 Early-Stage
- 4 Late-Stage
Key Investors:
Cohesity secured investments from SoftBank Vision Fund, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Morgan Stanley, Trinity Ventures, Google Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Foundation Capital, Wing Venture Capital, DHVC, BM, NVIDIA, Accel, Premji Invest, Madrona Venture Group, Artis Ventures, Battery Ventures, Cisco Investments, Sozo Ventures, and Qualcomm Ventures.
Funding and Investor data sourced from Tracxn
Why Consider Investing in Cohesity Pre-IPO Shares?
There are a lot of reasons why investing in pre-IPO shares of Cohesity could make sense. For one, the company has a proven track record. It has successfully protected the largest names in tech and currently secures hundreds of exabytes of data across the globe. Additionally, the firm continues to focus on safety and ensuring compliance, adding to its already high customer confidence levels.
Cohesity Leads in AI-Powered Data Management
When you examine Cohesity’s commitment to innovation, it’s clear to see why the company can always expand its features and products. Notably, Cohesity spends 2x as much on R&D as its closest competitor. This dedication, coupled with a strategic partnership with AI market leaders like NVIDIA, remains a driving factor in the company’s success.
Responsible AI Principles
Another major draw to Cohesity is the firm’s commitment to endorsing responsible AI usage. The company has integrated several features designed to kick up transparency, community governance, and offer secure access to powerful AI tools that can help to give users a competitive edge.
Flexible Options
Flexibility is another plus that Cohesity offers. The company supports a broad workload via its numerous offerings. Users can integrate AI systems, cloud migration, cybersecurity, and more. These features are fully customizable to suit the user’s needs.
Recognized as an Industry Leader
Cohesity is a trend setter that has received numerous accolades for its work across the tech field. The company was listed as a “Next Billion-Dollar Startup” by Forbes. It also has had supportive write-ups in Gartner and remains a favorite of analysts who believe the platform has the potential to accelerate decision-making across several key sectors, including cybersecurity, compliance audits, legal inquiries, and training data.
Positioning
Cohesity is among the top 5 contenders in the data management sector. The company currently ranks 4th among 922 active competitors with +13,600 global customers. The firm could see its positioning increase as its new products roll out, offering more support for large enterprise-level clientele.
Cloud-Based
A pivot towards cloud-based services helped Cohesity deepen its market penetration. By combining its AI and security offerings with cloud storage systems, the company provides a complete data management suite to users that doesn’t require hardware upgrades or major investments.
Cohesity has Strong Partnerships with Industry Leaders.
Cohesity has one of the most extensive partner ecosystems in the market. The company has made strategic moves with companies like Rackspace Technology and NVIDIA to integrate AI services and enhance security for users. These partnerships enable Cohesity to collaborate with other leading firms to drive AI evolution forward.
How to Buy Cohesity Pre-IPO Shares
Cohesity remains a privately held company, meaning that you will need to utilize a specialized approach to get access to shares. Here is what you need to consider.
1. Pre-IPO Secondary Marketplace
Secondary markets are purpose-built exchanges that connect pre-IPO shareholders with potential investors. These marketplaces can offer these assets because they work closely with employees, early-stage investors, and venture capitalists, who are crucial to the company’s pre-IPO growth.
Investing in pre-IPO shares of Cohesity could offer strong returns if the company’s valuation increases following its IPO. It’s common for company valuations to increase following an IPO. As such, it makes sense to add pre-IPO shares to your portfolio before the firm announces plans to go public.
Secondary marketplaces have many requirements. Here are some concerns you should be made aware of:
Eligibility: This approach requires you to be an accredited investor, meaning you will have to show at least $1M in liquid assets to qualify for access.
2. Private Equity Firms
Private equity firms gain access to pre-IPO shares during investment rounds. They then offer these shares to high-net-worth accredited investors with a commission. Notably, private equity firms are known to have extra stipulations, including blocking the sale of shares for years in some cases.
3. Employee Equity Sales
Many consider employee equity sales as the best way to acquire pre-IPO shares in Cohesity. This method of acquiring pre-IPO shares requires you to connect with former employees. It’s common for companies to issue shares as part of an incentive package. Notably, this profit-sharing method has become more popular, leading to more pre-IPO share opportunities for investors.
Private Transactions: There are a lot of hoops you will need to jump through to complete a private pre-IPO transaction, including creating specific legal agreements, conducting valuations, and setting in place any limitations on the transfer of the asset.
Brokerage: Brokers will take a lot of the confusion out of the pre-IPO process. These professionals can guide you through each step, ensuring full compliance and avoiding common errors untrained professionals make.
There are several risks that you should consider before jumping into the pre-IPO shares investment arena. Here are the top concerns:
Liquidity Risk
If you are looking for an asset that you can sell right away, pre-IPO shares are not the best option. These investments can include sales and transfer clauses that prevent the transfer of the asset until certain criteria, such as the IPO’s completion, are met. It’s even common for pre-IPO shares to require you to wait years before gaining the ability to sell your assets.
Finding a Broker
If you meet the requirements and are comfortable with the risks, several platforms offer access to pre-IPO opportunities:
Forge Global: One of the largest private stock marketplaces, offering shares in late-stage startups like SpaceX, Stripe, and Databricks. Minimums typically start around $100,000.
EquityZen: A popular platform allowing accredited investors to buy into private companies with minimums as low as $5,000. Past offerings include companies like Discord and UiPath.
Rainmaker Securities: A full-service broker that helps source and negotiate private share sales, including opportunities in companies like OpenAI, Stripe, and Palantir.
Hiive: A newer platform with live bid/ask pricing for hundreds of private companies. Transparent and low-fee, with minimums starting around $25,000.
MicroVentures: Offers pooled access to late-stage companies through special purpose vehicles (SPVs), including past investments in SpaceX and Instacart.
EquityBee: Allows investors to fund employee stock option exercises at startups, often at discounted valuations, with minimums around $10,000.
Augment: A digital-first marketplace showing real-time pricing for pre-IPO shares, targeting tech-savvy investors and offering lower transaction fees.
StartEngine Private: Launched in late 2023, this platform offers accredited investors access to Regulation D offerings in later-stage, venture-backed companies. In its first nine months, it generated $16.5 million in revenue, with average investments around $32,000
Important: Always perform thorough due diligence and consult a financial advisor before investing in private company shares.
Cohesity Valuation and IPO Outlook
Cohesity secured a $3.7B valuation on Mar 31, 2021. Impressively, the company has 1500 employees and remains one of the most in-demand pre-IPO shares in the AI market. Demand for Cohesity shares could see a boost in the coming months as the company has completed its Veritas acquisition and is actively working with NVIDIA on new products.
Notably, Cohesity filed for an IPO in 2021. However, the company postponed the public launch to focus on completing the Veritas acquisition and improving its positioning. Additionally, company executives have stated that they are in no rush to host the IPO and that they want to wait for the optimal market conditions to maximize their efforts.
Unlike many pre-IPO options, Cohesity has already expressed its plans to go public. As such, there are already many investors seeking exposure to the company’s shares. Those who can qualify for these assets could position themselves to profit if stock prices increase during or after the IPO.
Final Thoughts on Investing in Cohesity Pre-IPO
Investing in pre-IPO shares of Cohesity opens the door for exciting returns. The company’s innovative spirit, ground-breaking AI integrations, and massive ecosystem are all reasons for success. Together, these options make it an interesting AI stock for those seeking to secure exposure in this fast-paced industry.
Notably, all pre-IPO investing comes with risks that you should fully understand before entering any investment. It’s recommended that you speak with an investment professional to ensure that you remain within your risk appetite. For those who accomplish this task and find Cohesity Pre-IPO stocks to be a good fit for their portfolio, there could be a lot of upside potential in the coming years.
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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Pre-IPO shares are typically available only to accredited investors and carry significant risk. Always perform thorough due diligence and consult a financial advisor or legal expert before making investment decisions.