Mike Olson
Overview
Mike Olson is an American entrepreneur and investor, best known as the co-founder and former CEO of Cloudera, a leading data management and analytics platform company. He co-founded Cloudera in 2008, serving as its CEO until 2013, when he transitioned to the role of Chief Strategy Officer. In this capacity, Olson was responsible for Cloudera's product strategy, open source leadership, engineering alignment, and direct engagement with customers. Prior to Cloudera, Olson was the CEO of Sleepycat Software, the creators of the open-source embedded database engine Berkeley DB, which was acquired by Oracle in 2006. He also held technical and business positions at database vendors Britton Lee, Illustra Information Technologies, and Informix Software. Olson holds both Bachelor's and Master's degrees in Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley. Under Olson's leadership, Cloudera secured significant funding, including a $5 million investment in 2009 led by Accel Partners, followed by a $25 million funding round in October 2010, and a $40 million funding round in November 2011. In March 2014, Cloudera raised another $160 million from T. Rowe Price and other investors, with Intel investing $740 million for an 18% stake in the company, valuing it at $4.1 billion. These investments enabled Cloudera to expand its enterprise data cloud and big-data stack, combining Hadoop distributions with governance, security, and analytics. In October 2021, Cloudera was acquired by affiliates of Clayton, Dubilier & Rice and KKR in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $5.3 billion, marking a significant milestone in the company's growth and development. Throughout his career, Olson has been instrumental in shaping the big data and analytics landscape, contributing to the advancement of data management solutions for enterprises worldwide.
Investment Focus
- Innovative technology solutions
- Scalable business models
- Strong management teams
- Clear market differentiation
- Potential for significant growth
Portfolio Companies
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Unlock full contacts →Frequently asked questions about Mike Olson
What sectors does Mike Olson invest in?
Mike Olson invests in Technology, Software, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Cloud Computing and Analytics, and is based in Austin, Texas, United States. Mike Olson is listed as a angel in the ConnectSafely investor database.
What stage does Mike Olson invest at?
Mike Olson backs companies at Seed, Early Stage, Series A, Series B, Growth and Late Stage, writing cheques of 1M - 50M.
Which regions does Mike Olson invest in?
Mike Olson invests across United States.
What companies has Mike Olson invested in?
Mike Olson's portfolio includes Cloudera.
How do I contact Mike Olson?
Mike Olson's contact details — including phone and LinkedIn — are listed in the ConnectSafely investor database, along with its website and the LinkedIn profiles of the team.
Last updated · Source: ConnectSafely investor database




