Tidalscale

Market position

Sources describe TidalScale as a startup in the software-defined server / composable infrastructure segment, competing with ScaleMP, which markets a Versatile SMP (vSMP) architecture for aggregating independent systems into single virtual systems. The two companies litigated before settling in 2019. TidalScale received third-party recognition including Gartner Cool Vendor 2017, IDC Innovator 2017, Network World's list of hot virtualization startups, CIO Review's 20 Most Promising SAP Solution Providers 2019 and a Red Herring Top 100 Global award.

The stated differentiators are the ability to deliver large in-memory capacity on inexpensive standard servers rather than specialized scale-up hardware, compatibility with unmodified applications and operating systems, and a machine-learning layer that continuously auto-tunes the composed system after it is running. A company executive described this auto-tuning layer as the core of the technology.

Technology

The core product is the HyperKernel software layer, which binds multiple physical servers into a single virtual system and enables right-sizing on the fly. It runs an unmodified guest operating system and existing applications without changes, and once running, a machine-learning layer continuously optimizes and auto-tunes workload placement and performance across the pooled nodes.

Go-to-market

Oracle and SAP served as technical partners and a major component of go-to-market strategy, reflecting the product's use for in-memory databases. The company also positioned itself as a compute component that can slot into broader composable infrastructure deployments alongside third-party storage and networking.

Organizations requiring very large memory for research analytics, simulations and genomics, as well as users of in-memory databases such as SAP HANA and Oracle Database. Named customers include the University of Texas San Antonio, IoT platform provider Sirqul, and NCS, which runs a predictive analytics engine providing banks and regulatory agencies with real-time monitoring and alerts for cash-intensive businesses.

Geography

Headquartered in Campbell, California, at 1694 Dell Avenue. Sources do not describe additional offices.

History

Sources state the company was founded January 1, 2013 and headquartered in Campbell, California. It raised a $24 million Series B announced in October 2018, bringing cumulative funding to $38.8 million from investors including Bain Capital Ventures, Hummer Winblad, Sapphire Ventures, Infosys, SK Hynix, Citrix, Forte Ventures, Samsung and an unnamed leading server OEM. In July 2019 it settled all litigation with ScaleMP, taking a paid-up five-year license to ScaleMP's patent portfolio, with trade-secret claims against the company and its founders resolved without payment or admission of liability. In early 2023 Hewlett Packard Enterprise acquired TidalScale as one of five acquisitions HPE announced that year to expand its GreenLake platform.

Risks & controversies

TidalScale was involved in litigation with competitor ScaleMP, including trade-secret claims asserted against the company and against Ike Nassi and David Reed. The matter was settled in July 2019 with TidalScale taking a paid-up five-year license to ScaleMP's patent portfolio; the trade-secret claims were resolved without payment or admission of liability.