The Fabric, a pioneer in co-creating companies focused on cloud and IoT infrastructure technology, today announced that the following new advisory board members have joined: Pankaj Patel, former EVP and CDO with Cisco, and Alan Boehme, CTO of P&G. These new advisors join an unparalleled advisory board of existing members that includes Investor/Advisor and Former SVP with Citrix Klaus Oestermann, Former President of CenturyLink Gary Gauba, Former Chief Strategy Officer of NetApp Vic Mahadevan, VP and Citrix Fellow Abhishek Chauhan, Founder of Sand Hill Group MR Rangaswami, and CMO of Quali Shashi Kiran.

The Fabric launched with a vision to create multiple companies that solve the emerging problems and deliver the needed infrastructure to power the next wave of cloud computing. Through each pool of capital raised, The Fabric has been able to focus on key market needs. With Fabric 1, the company focused on cloud infrastructure; Fabric 2 added the emerging IoT market; and Fabric 3 will add emphasis on 5G and mobile edge-cloud infrastructure. The founders bring over 20 years in infrastructure experience that enables them to identify “white spaces” of opportunity in the market, and then actively co-create companies with entrepreneurs.

Prabakar Sundarrajan, Chief Strategist of The Fabric, said: “In addition to closely collaborating, The Fabric also provides critical resources, expertise and guidance to our co-created company leadership. Our founders and advisors are well-versed in all aspects of building infrastructure companies from the ground up, from creating products to pricing and distribution to full-fledged go-to-market planning. Our newest advisors Pankaj and Alan, in addition to our existing advisors, will be invaluable resources in bringing applicable knowledge to our startup co-founders. I look forward to continuing to work with them on our initiatives.”

Oestermann said: "I’ve enjoyed advising entrepreneurs with The Fabric for several years now, and am excited to continue my association to co-create companies with my investment in The Fabric. Together, we will have the opportunity to explore and develop new category defining technology innovations for the cloud and IoT infrastructure space, such as AI driven application performance, API based Apps, and IoT security.”

Patel said: "The Fabric has assembled an impressive team of cloud industry experts that bring an outstanding technical foundation to the companies they co-create. I am looking forward to working with The Fabric on delivering breakthrough technologies to enterprises. Cloud and IoT infrastructure are ripe for disruptive innovations."

Boehme said: “I am delighted to partner with The Fabric's team and entrepreneurs to help cloud and IoT security infrastructure technology companies thrive in this expansive market. The Fabric could not be better positioned to propel industry growth with its innovative, collaborative approach and deep technical expertise."

Today’s news falls on the heels of recent news that The Fabric closed a third pool of capital from Verizon Ventures, March Capital Partners, Citrix and Hitachi, bringing its total investment raised to $41 million. The capital will be leveraged to invest in early stage cloud infrastructure companies that it co-creates with entrepreneurs. Since founding in 2012, The Fabric has co-created eight companies, of which three have already been acquired: VeloCloud acquired by VMware, Perspica acquired by Cisco, and Appcito acquired by A10 Networks.