Exceptional

Up, up
and away
Andreas Bechtolsheim and
Jayshree Ullal had already built
Arista Networks into a successful
IT networking company, but the
rise of cloud computing took
them to a whole new level.
words Doug Milbrodt
Ullal and Bechtolsheim
at the NYSE to see Arista
become a public company
When Andreas Bechtolsheim founded
Arista Networks in 2004, he had
already played a key role in starting
a number of IT industry stalwarts,
including Sun Microsystems.
With Arista, however, Bechtolsheim had a very specific
goal in mind: to build an IT company led by engineers
that would provide disruptive, innovative solutions for
the world’s largest networking challenges. Over the next
four years, he focused on building the foundation for
Arista’s networking software architecture. In 2008, he
recruited industry leader Jayshree Ullal, a former Cisco
Systems executive, to serve as CEO.
Together, Bechtolsheim (working as
Chief Development Officer) and Ullal
have perfected the formula that has
powered Arista’s rapid ascent in the
networking industry. The company
currently has more than 3,000
customers — primarily data centers and
high-performance computing centers —
on its client roster.
Drawing on his prior IT industry
experience, Bechtolsheim was
determined not to seek outside financing
when starting the company.
Exceptional February–June 2016
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