Object First

What Object First does

Object First designs and sells ransomware-proof on-premises backup storage appliances purpose-built exclusively for Veeam environments. Founded in 2022 by Ratmir Timashev and Andrei Baronov — the same duo who co-founded Veeam Software — the company's core product is Ootbi (Out-of-the-Box Immutability), a 2U appliance that delivers S3-native object storage with S3 Compliance Mode Object Lock, enforcing zero-time immutability and a Zero Access architecture that prevents destructive actions even by privileged administrators. The portfolio expanded to include Ootbi Mini for SMB/ROBO/edge sites, the Honeypot decoy-VBR cyberthreat detection feature, and the Fleet Manager cloud-based centralized monitoring service (launched May 2026, integrated with Microsoft Entra ID). Validations include NCC Group annual penetration testing and Cohasset Associates FinServ compliance assessments covering SEC Rule 17a-4(f) and FINRA Rule 4511(c), with alignment to CISA Secure by Design, NIS2, DORA, NIST 800-53, GDPR, and CCPA.

The company operates on a 100% channel go-to-market model with no direct sales motion, distributing through tier-1 distributors (Arrow, CDW, TD Synnex, Softchoice), global VARs (Presidio, Logicalis, Compunet), and managed service providers across the Americas, EMEA, and LATAM. Revenue is generated through two pricing models: CapEx upfront purchase with fixed terms up to 5 years, and a Consumption pay-per-use subscription introduced in April 2025 with a 10 TB minimum commit and monthly billing. The company was acquired by Veeam Software on January 14, 2026, becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary; acquisition terms were not publicly disclosed. The company employs 101–250 people and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado, with offices in Beverly, Massachusetts, and St. Niklausen, Switzerland.

Name

Object First

Legal name

Object First GmbH

Website

https://objectfirst.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2022

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Object First designs ransomware-proof on-premises backup storage appliances (Ootbi) purpose-built exclusively for Veeam environments, serving mid-to-large enterprises and managed service providers through a 100% channel model with CapEx and Consumption pricing options. Now a Veeam Software subsidiary following its January 2026 acquisition.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Backup Storage Appliances

NAICS

Computer Storage Device Manufacturing (334112)

SIC

Computer Storage Devices (3572)

akta.pro primary industry

Data Protection & Backup Appliances (Backup Targets, Dedup Appliances) (HDACACAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Backup Appliances & Integrated Systems (HDABAEAE), Server Appliances (Purpose-Built: Security, Backup, Analytics, etc.) (HDACABAL)

Keywords

• Backup storage appliances
• Ransomware protection storage
• Immutable data storage
• Veeam backup infrastructure
• Data resilience solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Beverly

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Hardware Appliance Sales (CapEx): Traditional upfront purchase of Ootbi or Ootbi Mini appliances. Fixed term agreements generally up to 5 years. Includes software, OS, updates, technical support, and on-site service.
2. Consumption/Subscription Model: Pay-per-use subscription model with no upfront costs, no hardware refreshes to manage, and predictable monthly billing. Storage capacity from 10 TB to 7 PB. Billing based on actual usage with preset tiers and steps. Minimum commit is 10 TB.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Object First designs and sells on-premises backup storage appliances (Ootbi and Ootbi Mini) purpose-built exclusively for Veeam environments, featuring Absolute Immutability via S3 Compliance Mode Object Lock to prevent any user—including privileged admins—from altering or deleting backup data. The company also provides Fleet Manager, a cloud-based Zero Trust service for centralized monitoring and management of distributed appliance deployments.

Product overview

Object First is a backup storage company offering a portfolio of ransomware-proof on-premises storage appliances purpose-built exclusively for Veeam environments. The core product is Ootbi, a 2U rack-mount appliance providing Absolute Immutability via S3 compliance mode, supplemented by Ootbi Mini for smaller/edge deployments. Fleet Manager enables cloud-based centralized monitoring of distributed deployments. All products feature Zero Trust architecture with Zero Access to destructive actions. The company operates on a 100% channel model with both CapEx and Consumption (pay-per-use) acquisition options.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ootbi (Out-of-the-Box Immutability): Ransomware-proof backup storage appliance purpose-built for Veeam environments with absolute immutability.
• Fleet Manager
• Honeypot
• Ootbi Mini

Products and services

• Ootbi Enterprise-grade 2U rack-mount backup storage appliance with Absolute Immutability using S3 compliance mode, providing ransomware-proof on-premises storage optimized for Veeam Backup & Replication. Ingest speeds up to 8 GB/s, capacities from 18 TB to 432 TB per node, scalable to 1.7 PB per 4-node cluster and beyond 7 PB across multiple clusters.
• Ootbi Mini Compact desktop tower backup storage appliance delivering enterprise-grade Zero Trust security and Absolute Immutability for small businesses, remote offices, branch locations, and edge sites without racks or server rooms. Capacities from 8-24 TB per node, scalable to 4-node clusters (96 TB).
• Fleet Manager Secure cloud-based service providing centralized monitoring and management of distributed Ootbi backup storage deployments. Offers multi-cluster visibility, fleet-wide health monitoring, multi-tenant access controls, and secure remote access. Integrates with Microsoft Entra ID. Available at no additional cost to Ootbi users with active support contracts.

Quantifiable outcome

• 300% faster backups (DataServ partnership)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• VeeamflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 January 2026Acquisition completed in January 2026. Veeam, a provider of data resilience and protection technology, acquired Object First to offer pre-integrated, easy-to-deploy on-premises solutions that complement Veeam's cloud offerings like Veeam Data Cloud Vault. Object First had reported 291% YoY growth in Q3 2025, making it a fast-growing addition to Veeam's portfolio.
• DataServcoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDataServ partnered with Object First to offer immutable backup storage as a solution, which they implemented internally and now offer as a managed service. Achieved 300% faster backups and two-to-three times faster recovery speeds for their customers. The partnership enabled DataServ to differentiate themselves in the MSP market while addressing customer cybersecurity concerns.
• HybrIT ServicescoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerHybrIT Services launched an immutable backup solution through the NHS SBS DWS2 framework in partnership with Object First, designed to help UK public sector organisations meet the government's ransomware mandate. The solution addresses ransomware threats to health trusts, councils, schools, and emergency services by ensuring recovery remains possible through immutable object storage and isolated data copies.
• Central TechnologycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUK-based managed service provider that partnered with Object First, generating over £400k in revenue growth. Central Technology improved its security offering and positioned itself as one of the UK's leading managed service providers using Object First's Ootbi solution.
• VeeamflagshipTechnology or IntegrationObject First was founded by the same duo (Ratmir Timashev and Andrei Baronov) who co-founded Veeam. Object First Ootbi is purpose-built exclusively for Veeam environments, using Veeam's SOS API for direct-to-object functionality. Veeam acquired Object First in January 2026 for expanded data resilience capabilities. Object First is Veeam Ready certified for Object and Repository.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Rubrik: Rubrik is a leading data security and resilience platform offering immutable backup storage, ransomware recovery, and cyber posture management. It directly competes with Object First for enterprise backup storage spend, particularly where buyers want a unified SaaS-managed alternative to Veeam-centric appliance deployments.
• Cohesity: Cohesity delivers a hyperconverged data protection platform with immutable backup, ransomware detection, and integrated data management. It competes head-to-head with Object First in the enterprise immutable backup segment and has been expanding into Veeam-compatible workflows.
• HYCU: HYCU provides purpose-built data protection for Veeam and other backup platforms with a focus on simplicity and ransomware-proof backup. It is a close direct peer given its Veeam specialization, similar SMB/ROBO go-to-market, and overlapping customer pain points around immutable backup.
• Exagrid: Exagrid sells purpose-built backup storage appliances with deduplication and a tiered air-gap architecture for ransomware recovery. It is a direct peer in the on-prem backup appliance category, competing with Ootbi on price/performance for mid-market and enterprise Veeam shops.

Broad incumbents

• Dell PowerProtect (Dell Technologies): Dell's PowerProtect DD and Data Domain lines dominate the enterprise backup appliance market and have been extended with cyber recovery vaults for ransomware resilience. They are broad incumbents offering overlapping immutable backup capabilities at much larger scale than Object First.
• Veeam Software: Veeam is the dominant independent backup software vendor, Object First's exclusive integration target, and now its parent company following the January 2026 acquisition. It shapes the competitive landscape, partner ecosystem, and product roadmap in which Object First operates.
• Commvault: Commvault is an established enterprise data protection and information management platform with built-in immutable backup, ransomware detection, and broad hypervisor/application support. It is a broad incumbent competing for the same regulated, large-enterprise immutable backup budget.

Emerging players

• Wasabi Technologies: Wasabi provides affordable S3-compatible object storage widely used as immutable backup target for Veeam and other backup software. It competes indirectly with Ootbi by offering a low-cost cloud alternative to on-prem backup appliances, with Veeam Ready certifications and immutability features.
• Backblaze: Backblaze offers S3-compatible object storage with Bucket Lock for immutable backup retention, frequently deployed as a Veeam backup target. It is an emerging alternative for cost-sensitive buyers comparing Object First's on-prem appliance to cloud object storage.
• Storware Backup & Recovery: Storware provides software-defined backup and recovery with immutable storage support for virtualization and cloud environments. It is an emerging player addressing overlapping SMB and mid-market data protection needs where Object First also competes via Ootbi Mini.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/objectfirst
• Instagraminstagram.com/objectfirst_
• Xx.com/object_first

Compliance9 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Object First