VKernelTM Secures $4.6 Million Series A Financing
Funding co-led by Hummer Winblad Venture Partners and Polaris Venture Partners
PORTSMOUTH, N.H., February 4, 2008 - VKernel Corporation, a provider of easy-to-use and
quick-to-deploy virtual appliances for managing virtual server environments, announced today the
company has raised $4.6 million in its initial institutional round of funding. The round was co-led
by Hummer Winblad Venture Partners and Polaris Venture Partners.
VKernel will use the funds to advance product development, increase sales, and expand market
awareness. Additionally, Mitchell Kertzman of Hummer Winblad and Dave Barrett of Polaris will
join VKernel's Board of Directors.
"The server virtualization market is growing explosively," said Mitchell Kertzman, managing
director at Hummer Winblad. "This has us very excited about VKernel's vision as it is providing
the essential tools for IT staffs to virtualize their environments faster, more cost-effectively, and
with greater confidence."
"We believe organizations will see VKernel technology as a vital component of successful
virtualization projects," stated Dave Barrett, general partner at Polaris Venture Partners. "The
company's executive team has a solid track record of growing businesses from the ground up,
and we fully anticipate VKernel will rapidly become a player in this market."
VKernel, first launched in January 2007, is building a suite of "plug-and-play" virtual appliances
designed to quickly solve real world systems management challenges as organizations migrate to
virtual server environments.
VKernel's patent-pending Chargeback appliance is certified byVMware,
and enables IT groups to immediately solve today's critical pain points by providing cost
visibility into the resource consumption of each virtual machine, resource pool, host, or cluster.
"Organizations of all sizes are virtualizing their server farms, which is creating a new set of systems management
challenges," said Alex Bakman, founder and CEO of VKernel. "To be successful, IT groups need tools that address
their most pressing issues. Unlike traditional systems management products that are difficult to install,
learn, and use, VKernel is delivering tiny virtual appliances designed to solve specific issues."
VKernel's Chargeback Virtual Appliance is available for download on the company's website. For
additional information, pricing, and how to purchase, visit www.vkernel.com.
About VKernel Corporation
Based in Portsmouth, NH, VKernel is dedicated to developing best-of-breed virtual appliances
that enhance performance, lower costs, and simplify management of virtual environments of all
sizes. As a certified VMware partner, VKernel offers the industry's only VMware certified virtual
appliances for analyzing capacity, chargeback, and cost visibility. For more information, visit
www.vkernel.com.
About Polaris Venture Partners
A national venture capital firm with over $3 billion under management, Polaris invests in seed,
early stage and growth equity businesses in the technology, life science, digital media, enertech
and consumer sectors. Through a philosophy of lead investing and active, long-term partnering
with entrepreneurs and management teams, Polaris has helped many companies achieve
outstanding success. For more information, visit www.polarisventures.com
About Hummer Winblad Venture Partners
Hummer Winblad Venture Partners is a leading venture capital firm focused on software investing
and manages over $1 billion in cumulative capital. Since Hummer Winblad Venture Partners'
inception in 1989 the firm has launched over 100 new software companies. For more
information, visit www.humwin.com.
