Samsara (company)

Samsara Inc. is an American IoT company headquartered in San Francisco, California that provides software and insights for physical operations. The company has over 20,000 customers across North America and Europe. Samsara developed a connected operations cloud platform that provides insights to physical operations organizations in the transportation, construction, energy, utilities, public sector and retail industries, and supports the safety and efficiency of those operations. The company’s initial public offering raised $805 million in December 2021.

History
Co-founders Sanjit Biswas and John Bicket met while graduate students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The pair founded Samsara in 2015 after selling their previous company, Meraki, to Cisco Systems in 2012. Samsara was initially created to provide sensor technology for industrial operations, and Andreessen Horowitz became a Series A round early investor.

Samsara achieved unicorn status in March 2018 after a funding round led to a valuation of over $1B. Another funding round later that year rose the valuation to $3.6B backed by Andreessen Horowitz and General Catalyst. A Series F funding round saw Samsara's valuation rise to $6.3B with Tiger Global Management and Dragoneer Investment Group joining for the first time.

Samsara was impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic which resulted in a reduction to their staff.

In February 2019, Samsara introduced new AI dash cameras that use computer vision to interpret road scenes and driving behavior. In February 2021, the startup announced that it had surpassed $300 million in run-rate subscription revenue, serving over 20,000 customers and adding seven new patents. Samsara’s partners include vehicle manufacturers Ford Motor Company, General Motors, Navistar, EVgo, Stellantis Free2move and transport refrigeration company Thermo King. In September 2022, the company announced its 200th partner integration. Samsara also has a slate of public sector customers, including the City of New Orleans, the City of Boston, the City of Houston, and the State of New Jersey.

In December 2021, Samsara publicly listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “IOT”. Samsara sold 35 million shares in its initial public offering to raise $805 million at a valuation of $11.5 billion. In December 2023, Samsara surpassed $1 billion in Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR).

Samsara was named one of Glassdoor’s Best Places to Work for culture and values in 2023.