Veeam Software has announced the appointment of Niraj Tolia as Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Tolia joins Veeam following the acquisition of Alcion, a security-first, AI-driven data management startup he co-founded with Vaibhav Kamra. The co-founders, along with the Alcion team, bring a unique blend of technical acumen and deep familiarity with Veeam’s culture and vision.
In his new role, Tolia will spearhead the product strategy and engineering efforts for the Veeam Data Cloud (VDC), which expands Veeam’s industry-leading data resilience solutions into a powerful, flexible suite of services. Working closely with Anton Gostev, Veeam’s Chief Product Officer (CPO), Tolia will ensure customers continue to benefit from Veeam’s unrivalled innovation in data resilience. Alcion’s team will join Veeam immediately.
“Niraj is one of those rare individuals who not only understands where the market is headed but also possesses the skills and vision to bring that future to life for our customers,” said Anand Eswaran, CEO at Veeam. “He has already demonstrated this with the creation of Kasten, which has become the #1 solution for Kubernetes data resilience since being acquired by Veeam in 2020. His proven track record, combined with the explosive growth of Veeam Data Cloud – the fastest growing product in Veeam’s history – creates a tremendous opportunity for Veeam to redefine the market once again for data resilience.”
Tolia is uniquely positioned for success at Veeam, having already built an industry-leading solution with Kasten. As co-founders of both Kasten and Alcion, Tolia and Kamra’s combined expertise in data management and cloud-native technologies, coupled with a deep understanding of Veeam’s strategic direction and culture, will be invaluable in driving innovation forward.
“Everything starts with the customer,” said Niraj Tolia. “In our digital world, protecting data and ensuring its resilience against threats and outages is more critical than ever. Combining Alcion’s AI and security capabilities with the robust power of Veeam Data Cloud gives us an extraordinary opportunity to enhance our solutions and reinforce Veeam’s leadership in Data Resilience.”
A serial entrepreneur, Tolia previously founded Kasten and served as the General Manager of the Veeam Kasten for Kubernetes business unit. Before founding Kasten, Tolia led product development at Maginatics, a startup acquired by Dell EMC’s Data Protection Group. Tolia holds a Ph.D., M.S., and B.S. in Computer Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University.
