# Dean Drako

> Dean Drako is a serial entrepreneur and engineer who has founded more than six companies across cybersecurity, cloud video surveillance, physical access control, and electric vehicles. He invented the IT industry's first spam filter appliance at Barracuda Networks, took the company to a NYSE IPO, then turned his restless attention to cloud video security at Eagle Eye Networks and physical access control at Brivo. In December 2025 he merged both into the world's largest AI cloud-native physical security company, assuming the CEO chair at Brivo. He holds 53+ patents and has won the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award twice - a feat as rare as his other hobby: co-founding an electric supercar company.

- **Role:** Chairman & CEO at Brivo
- **Organizations:** Brivo, Eagle Eye Networks, IC Manage, Drako Motors, Cobalt AI, PermRecord Foundation, Barracuda Networks (former), Design Acceleration Inc (former)
- **From:** Detroit, Michigan, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BS in Electrical Engineering, University of Michigan, MS in Electrical Engineering, UC Berkeley
- **Known for:** Invented the IT industry's first spam filter appliance at Barracuda Networks, Grew Barracuda Networks to $200M+ annual revenue and 150,000 customers, Led Barracuda Networks to NYSE IPO (ticker: CUDA) in November 2013

## Career timeline

- **High School** — Founded T-net, a company providing bulletin board system (BBS) software for modem-based messaging; sold the company and used proceeds to fund college tuition
- **1992** — Founded Design Acceleration Inc (DAI), a semiconductor industry company
- **1999** — Sold Design Acceleration Inc to Cadence Design Systems
- **2003** — Founded Barracuda Networks, creating the IT industry's first spam filter appliance; also co-founded IC Manage with Shiv Sikand
- **2007** — Won Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award (Northern California, Networking and Communications) for Barracuda Networks
- **2012** — Left Barracuda Networks to found Eagle Eye Networks, a cloud-based video security company
- **2013** — Barracuda Networks completed NYSE IPO under ticker CUDA
- **2014** — Officially launched Eagle Eye Networks; named by Goldman Sachs as one of 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs; delivered keynote at UC Berkeley Engineering Week
- **2015** — Acquired Brivo for $50M, assuming role of Chairman; co-founded Drako Motors; founded PermRecord Foundation
- **2019-2023** — Eagle Eye Networks named to Deloitte Technology Fast 500 four times (2019, 2020, 2021, 2023)
- **2022** — Drako Motors launched the Drako Dragon: 2,000 HP, 200+ MPH all-electric luxury SUV
- **2023** — Raised $100M Series F for Eagle Eye Networks
- **2024** — Acquired Cobalt AI (enterprise AI alarm filtering and security robotics); won EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award (Gulf South Region) for Eagle Eye Networks
- **2025-12** — Merged Eagle Eye Networks with Brivo to form the world's largest AI cloud-native physical security company; assumed role of CEO at Brivo

## Achievements

- Invented the IT industry's first spam filter appliance at Barracuda Networks
- Grew Barracuda Networks to $200M+ annual revenue and 150,000 customers
- Led Barracuda Networks to NYSE IPO (ticker: CUDA) in November 2013
- Executed six strategic acquisitions as Barracuda CEO
- Won Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award twice (2007 and 2024) - one of few founders to achieve this twice
- Named by Goldman Sachs as one of 100 Most Intriguing Entrepreneurs (2014)
- Grew Eagle Eye Networks to Deloitte Technology Fast 500 four times
- Raised $100M Series F for Eagle Eye Networks in 2023
- Holds 53+ patents across video streaming, video analytics, network security, digital circuits, and electric automobiles
- Acquired Brivo for $50M in 2015 and grew it to 6M+ users across 100K+ access points
- Merged Eagle Eye Networks and Brivo to create world's largest AI cloud-native physical security company (Dec 2025)
- Co-founded Drako Motors, producing the Drako GTE ($1.2M electric supercar) and Drako Dragon (2,000 HP electric SUV)
- Advisory Council member, University of Michigan College of Engineering (since 2012)
- Delivered University of Michigan commencement address (2016)
- Delivered keynote at UC Berkeley Engineering Week (2014)
- Featured in Richard Newton lecture series at UC Berkeley
- Elected to ESD Alliance board five times (2012-2023)
- Barracuda Networks ranked #2 by Glassdoor in 2011 with 88% employee approval rating

## Latest updates

- **2025-12** — Merged Eagle Eye Networks with Brivo to create the world's largest AI cloud-native physical security company; became CEO of Brivo
- **2024-05** — Won EY Entrepreneur of the Year Award (Gulf South Region) for Eagle Eye Networks
- **2024-01** — Acquired Cobalt AI, adding enterprise AI alarm filtering and security robotics to the portfolio
- **2023-05** — Brivo raised $92.5M in new funding (Other stage), bringing total funding to $167.5M
- **2022-11** — Drako Motors launched the Drako Dragon: a 2,000 HP, 200+ MPH all-electric luxury SUV

## Links

- Website: https://brivo.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/deandrako

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/dean-drako
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-17