Solo.io: Cloud Native API Gateway & Service Mesh Platform

Simplifying Cloud Native Application Connectivity with Gloo Mesh Enterprise

Establishing connections between the numerous services and microservices essential for contemporary cloud native enterprise applications can present significant challenges. Solo.io, a startup company, is aiming to revolutionize this process with the latest release of its Gloo Mesh Enterprise platform.

The Core Concept: Service Mesh

Founded in Cambridge, Massachusetts, Solo.io has consistently focused on the concept of a service mesh. This approach offers a streamlined and automated method for interconnecting diverse components, frequently within a Kubernetes-based cloud native environment.

Idit Levine, founder and CEO of Solo, shared with TechCrunch that she anticipated a period of market understanding regarding the necessity and benefits of service meshes when she launched the company in 2017. Consequently, Solo also developed an API gateway technology to facilitate connections between APIs – diverse data sources or services.

Unified Service: Integrating API and Service Mesh

Previously, Solo’s Gloo Mesh Enterprise offering comprised separate API and service mesh components, each with distinct configurations and control planes. This has now been altered through the integration of both API and service mesh functionalities into a single, cohesive service.

This integration is designed to simplify the setup and configuration of various cloud-based services operating on Kubernetes. It aims to provide a more unified and efficient management experience.

Leveraging Open Source Technologies

Solo’s service mesh, Gloo Mesh, is built upon the open source Istio project, originally created by Google. The API product, Gloo Edge, utilizes the open source Envoy project, initially developed by Lyft.

Levine explained that her team has effectively utilized Istio’s plug-in architecture to connect with Envoy, achieving an optimized integration.

Accelerated Adoption and Market Differentiation

Levine observed that many users initially adopt an API gateway before expanding their usage to include the service mesh. With this new Gloo Mesh Enterprise update, she anticipates a faster rate of customer adoption.

Solo believes this unified approach will allow them to effectively compete against rivals in both the service mesh and API management sectors.

Competitive Landscape

While the service mesh market is still developing, with competitors like Tetrate, API gateways represent a more established technology. Several prominent vendors operate in the API management space, including Kong, which has secured $71 million in funding.

Google’s acquisition of API vendor Apigee in 2016 for $625 million demonstrates the importance of this market, and Google has continued to expand the technology, including the launch of the Apigee X platform in February of this year.

Future Developments: GraphQL Support

The integration of Gloo Edge for API management into Gloo Mesh Enterprise doesn’t yet encompass the full spectrum of API technologies. Currently, Gloo Edge supports REST-based APIs, which are the most prevalent today.

However, it does not yet support the emerging GraphQL API standard, which is gaining increasing popularity. Levine indicated that an announcement regarding GraphQL support is forthcoming from Solo.

Funding and Investors

Solo.io has raised a total of $36.5 million across two funding rounds: an $11 million Series A in 2018 and a $23 million Series B announced in October 2020. The company’s investors include Redpoint and True Ventures.