Two weeks ago I joined Avvenu, Inc. as CEO. We’ll start a company blog shortly. Meanwhile, I wanted to add a more personal perspective to the company news release. Several friends were surprised that I did not go to an open source or media company. In truth, I certainly looked at opportunities at several, and at some companies with more traditional products and services as well. In the end, Avvenu captured my imagination and passion for the same reasons that VA Software/OSDN did: incredible market potential, a highly talented and fearless team, and a companywide hunger for leadership.
Over the past couple of years, the developers at Avvenu have built a very strong remote access platform, enabling consumers and business users to securely access their home and office computers directly from their web-enabled mobile device or computer.
I’ve been associated with startups before, and the VC’s can make or break a company, regardless of its potential. So, I took a hard look at Avvenu’s pedigree. Avvenu is backed by two tier 1 venture capital firms, Charles River Ventures and Worldview Technology Partners. Both VC firms have in excess of $1B+ under management, both have extensive portfolios, and both have had some of the biggest and well known exits in the past few years. Avvenu is also backed by Motorola, a key business partner.
Today, many of us in the industry think of technology as being either consumer or business, but not both. I believe that consumer and business technologies, much like open and proprietary software, are quickly converging and introducing new business models. I’m thrilled to be part of this innovative young company that will play a key role in facilitating this convergence and the shift to seamless mobile lifestyles.
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