DURHAM – A Fortune 500 professional services firm is going to establish an Internet of Things lab in the Triangle while also acquiring Durham IoT startup Bright Wolf.
In a deal announced early Thursday, Cognizant said it is acquiring the IoT-focused firm launched by graduates of N.C. State and UNC-Chapel Hill.
With the deal, Cognizant acquires one of the Triangle’s most promising startups, according to serial entrepreneur and investor Scot Wingo which listed Bright Wolf as one of his “tweeners” – growing, attractive firms with promising futures and possible acquisition targets.
Brigh Wolf’s logo at Twitter
“Internet of Things (IoT) is going to be huge and Bright Wolf is a Durham company with a lot of traction in the space,” Wingo wrote in his 2019 report. “Imagine that everything had a sensor on it. If a generator in a factory is going out, a sensor could raise an alert so a second generator could take over while a maintenance dude comes out to fix generator 1. Bright Wolf’s platform enables this type of machine-to-machine (m2m) automation, and is used heavily in the transportation industry.”
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“Combining Bright Wolf’s experience in production-class IIoT deployments with Cognizant’s expertise in foundational IIoT technologies will increase our clients’ resiliency, operational efficiency, and competitive advantage,” said Malcolm Frank, P=president of Digital Business at Cognizant, in the announcement. “Companies are increasingly embracing IIoT, and Bright Wolf’s team of senior IIoT architects have delivered the business value others have struggled to achieve. We look forward to this talented team joining Cognizant.”
Cognizant said the new “innovation lab” will have the “Bright Wolf team as its core.”
Noting Bright Wolf’s success in industrial IoI, or IIoT, Peter Bourne, it’s CEO, said the firm brings multiple capabilities to Cognizant.
“IIoT transformation can be a complex, high-stakes undertaking for any business,” Bourne explained.
“Bright Wolf has helped leading companies across industries realize their IIoT vision through our Zero Waste Engineering™ approach. We help ensure clients make the right investments at the right time and have the ability to scale as dictated by business and market needs. Our unique capabilities, together with Cognizant’s deep vertical industry knowledge, scale, and expertise in predictive analytics, AI, cloud, and IoT, will provide clients with an unparalleled partner on their IIoT journey.”
