Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers-backed startup to Present at TechCrunch Disrupt NY
NEW YORK and MENLO PARK, Calif., April 30, 2013 – Workspot today launched its new bring-your-own-device (BYOD) app giving IT professionals the tools they need to quickly manage employees’ personal devices in the workplace. Founded by a trio of experienced technologists, including CEO Amitabh Sinha, formerly of Citrix, CTO Puneet Chawla, formerly of VMware, and Vice President Ty Wang, formerly of Oracle and Twilio, Workspot has raised $1.9 million in seed funding. Investors include Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Norwest, Redpoint, and angel investors, including Peter Wagner and Gaurav Garg.
Workspot is a single app and secure mobile workplace that helps end-users and IT departments conveniently separate work-related content and personal information stored on a device. Workspot has created a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution for IT administrators, Workspot Control, and a mobile application for iPads called Workspot. Working inside a single, contained workspace, end-users can easily flip between applications inside Workspot, including Intranet, SharePoint, Email, and Microsoft Office documents. Collaboration with co-workers is possible through applications that reside behind their organization’s firewall as well as making full use of SaaS applications.
“Workspot is a cloud-based, BYOD solution that provides security without the need for additional data center software installations and gives end-users a seamless, easy-to-use solution,” said Amitabh Sinha, CEO, Workspot. “Our approach stands apart because IT departments can get critical business applications to their end-users typically in less than 30 minutes.”
The new Workspot app underwent pre-launch testing as part of Spiceworks’ SpicePanel program, an initiative that connects startups and established technology companies with more than 2.4 million IT professionals. Workspot intelligently connects to businesses’ existing security infrastructure, embracing and extending the authentication schemes IT professionals have already implemented with SSL-VPN appliances. No credentials are stored in the cloud, and all authentication is done directly against existing security appliances.
“The small-to-midsize business market represents an enormous opportunity for technology brands who can move quickly to address a specific need or pain point, such as BYOD management,” said Jay Hallberg, co-founder and VP of Marketing at Spiceworks. “Early access to the latest technologies like Workspot, provides the Spiceworks community with the opportunity to shape the products and services they purchase to do their jobs.”
“In the face of the BYOD explosion, this is a great method of helping users while still meeting compliance,” said Scott Chille, IT Director, Mason City Clinic. “My users are glad to have access to clinic applications and information on their iPads. Before, they were hauling their laptops around with them and wouldn’t bring it into a meeting – now they can multitask.”
Workspot competed in TechCrunch Disrupt’s Startup Battlefield in New York City, Tuesday, April 30, in the ‘Mobile First’ category. Based in Menlo Park, CA, the Workspot team includes experienced professionals from companies including Juniper Networks, Dell, F5, and Microsoft. For more information, visit: www.workspot.com.
About Workspot
Workspot is a bring-your-own-device solution for the mobile workplace. The app was created by a team of experienced technologists with backgrounds from Citrix, Oracle, Juniper Networks, VMware, Symantec, Microsoft, and Cisco. Workspot has raised a $1.9 million round of seed from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Norwest, Redpoint, and angel investors. Workspot is now available in the Apple App Store. To learn more, visit www.workspot.com or follow us on Twitter (@workspotinc).
