 | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Education technology |
| Founded | January 2011; 14 years ago (2011-01) inNew York, USA |
| Founder | Jonathan Hefter |
| Defunct | December 16, 2020 (2020-12-16) |
| Fate | Acquired by Google |
| Headquarters | , USA |
Area served | Worldwide |
| Products | CloudReady |
| Owner | Google (100%) |
| Parent | |
| Website | www |
Neverware Inc was aNew York–basedtechnology company and asubsidiary ofGoogle.
It was the developer of CloudReady, adistribution of Google'sChromiumOS designed to be installed on existing computers (as opposed to Google's commercial version,ChromeOS, which is sold primarily as pre-loaded software onnetbooks). Neverware marketed CloudReady as a means to reuse older computers (particularly at schools), thus reducingelectronic waste.
Although the company began with an exclusive focus on theUSK-12 education sector, it announced in October 2017 its intention to use itsSeries B funding from Google to further expand into the enterprise market.[1] On December 16, 2020, Neverware announced that it had beenacquired by Google.
Jonathan Hefter began developing Neverware's core technology in 2009[2] after graduating fromWharton Business School at theUniversity of Pennsylvania.[3] In May 2010,Dogpatch Labs invited Hefter to work out of theirManhattanincubator,[4] and in early 2011 Neverware officially formed, moved to General Assembly's Manhattan location,[5] and began operations. Hefter remains at Neverware aschairman.[6]
After a successfulpilot program,[2] Neverware launched in January 2013, rolling out its first product—thedesktop virtualization platformPCReady—at schools in the New York City area.[7] The product primarily targeted the K-12 school market, as a means of refurbishing older computers in preparation for wider rollouts ofelectronicstandardized tests.[8] By 2015, PCReady had been adopted at 10% ofNew York City's schools.[9]
While early reception to PCReady was positive, it faced competition in the education market from Google'sChromeOS ecosystem (includingChromebooks), which leveraged cloud services and lightweight hardware.[8] In response, Neverware began developing a fork of Google'sopen-sourceChromiumOS, known asCloudReady, which was designed to "bring the benefits that many school are realizing with products like Chromebooks to a much wider group of schools for a lower price".[8][9]
In October 2017, Neverware announced that Google would lead its Series B round of investment as a strategic partner and investor.[1]
In March 2018, Neverware announced it would acquire Flint Innovations, the UK-based company behind Flint OS, another offshoot of ChromiumOS.[10]
On December 16, 2020, Neverware announced that it had been acquired by Google, and that its employees would join the main ChromeOS team. The company stated that there would be no immediate changes to the CloudReady product.[11][12] In July 2022, Google released ChromeOS Flex, an official offshoot of ChromeOS with a similar focus to CloudReady.[13][14]
Neverware's first product,PCReady, was amultiseatdesktop virtualization platform, seeking to convert older computers toWindows 7–basedthin clients using its remotely-managed "Juicebox"server appliance.[2][15][7] The platform was sold as a subscription service per-client.[9]
Neverware's second product,CloudReady, was a distribution ofChromiumOS targeting users and organizations wanting to install the software on existing computers. The commercial version of the product could be managed using Google's existing enterprise tools, allowing surplus hardware to be used in tandem withChromeOS devices.[16][8][9]
Neverware was backed by a variety of technology and venture capital firms. Investors includedGoogle,Khosla Ventures,Upfront Ventures,Thrive Capital,General Catalyst Partners,Collaborative Fund,OurCrowd, andMark Suster.[3][7]
Neverware had received media attention for its investment from Google,[17] young founder,[18] noteworthy cause,[19] and projected viability.[5] It had also attracted interest for its potential for reducingEwaste by extending the lifespan of aging hardware.[20] Neverware had appeared in theWall Street Journal,[21] theBoston Globe,[22] theGuardian,[23]Forbes.com,[24]The New York Times,[25]TechCrunch,[7]The Verge,[2]Engadget,[26] andThe MIT Technology Review.[27] Neverware had also been repeatedly recognized as being a great place to work by organizations such asCrain's New York, Built in NYC, Business Intelligence Group, and Great Place to Work.[28]
