Barefoot Networks
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersSanta Clara, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
Barefoot Networks firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Barefoot Networks
- Legal name
- Barefoot Networks, Inc.
- Website
- https://barefootnetworks.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Acquired
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Barefoot Networks industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Programmable Ethernet Switch Silicon
- SIC
- Computer Communications Equipment (3576)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Network/Infrastructure Processors (Switching/Routing/SmartNIC DPUs) (HDAHAJAH)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Cloud-Scale / Hyperscale Ethernet Switching (HDAFAAAF), Data Center Ethernet Switching (ToR/Leaf-Spine) (HDABAFAA), Programmable / White-Box & Bare-Metal Switching (HDAFAAAG)
Keywords
Where Barefoot Networks is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Santa Clara
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Barefoot Networks business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels2 records
Barefoot Networks product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Barefoot Networks designs and sells P4-programmable Ethernet switch silicon (Intel Tofino and Tofino 2) based on the Protocol Independent Switch Architecture (PISA), enabling network owners to customize packet processing at line rate. The company also provides supporting software tools — P4 Studio for development, P4 Insight for debugging, and Deep Insight for per-packet network analytics — sold to switch vendors, hyperscale data centers, and communications service providers.
Product overview
Barefoot Networks, acquired by Intel in June 2019, delivered a portfolio of P4-programmable Ethernet switch products and supporting software tools. The core product line includes the Intel Tofino and Tofino 2 programmable switches, which provide programmable packet processing with up to 12.8 Tb/s bandwidth. Supporting software includes the P4 Studio development environment, P4 Insight debugging tools, and Deep Insight network analytics software. These products enable network owners to customize switch table sizes, enhance existing networking functions, and add new capabilities such as telemetry, security, and load balancing through P4 programmability.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Intel® Tofino™ The world's first end-user programmable Ethernet switch chip, built on the Protocol Independent Switch Architecture (PISA) and programmable via the P4 language. It offers up to 6.4 Tb/s of bandwidth and is available in multiple SKUs for different applications, targeting switch ODM/OEM/OS vendors and hyperscale data center operators.
- Intel® Tofino™ 2 Next-generation programmable Ethernet switch capable of up to 12.8 Tb/s of bandwidth — twice that of the original Tofino — designed to meet the needs of hyperscale data centers. P4-programmable via the PISA architecture.
- Intel® P4 Studio Next-generation development environment providing a use case-driven toolset for developing custom P4 software for Intel Tofino Intelligent Fabric Processors. Includes tools, APIs, and production-ready data-plane implementations.
- Intel® P4 Insight Software providing powerful debugging tools and detailed dashboard views of P4 programs to reduce development time, showing how programs are mapped to hardware resources.
- Intel® Deep Insight Network Analytics Software Enables real-time per-packet visibility into network infrastructure. Monitors and analyzes every packet drop, detects and stores anomalies and events for deeper historical analysis.
Quantifiable outcome
- Up to 12.8 Tb/s packet processing performance
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Barefoot Networks
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Barefoot Networks technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability1 record
Feature5 records
Barefoot Networks partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- P4.orgcoreP4.org is an independent nonprofit organization that owns and manages the P4 programming language (Apache-licensed open source). Barefoot Networks contributed to the P4 language design alongside Google, Stanford, Cornell, Princeton, VMware, Microsoft, Xilinx, and others. The language is target-independent and can program any programmable forwarding device.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Barefoot Networks competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Cisco (Silicon One): Cisco Silicon One is Cisco's in-house programmable switching ASIC used in both Cisco-branded and merchant platforms, directly competing with Tofino in hyperscale and large-enterprise switching deployments.
- Broadcom: Broadcom's Tomahawk and Trident lines are the dominant merchant Ethernet switching ASICs in hyperscale data centers, competing head-to-head with Barefoot's Tofino on bandwidth and feature programmability for hyperscale and cloud customers.
- Marvell Technology: Marvell's Teralynx switching silicon directly competes with Tofino in hyperscale data center switching, offering high-radix Ethernet switch ASICs with comparable bandwidth targets and a similar focus on merchant programmability.
- NVIDIA (Mellanox Spectrum): NVIDIA's Spectrum Ethernet switches (originally Mellanox) compete with Tofino for AI-fabric and hyperscale deployments, providing high-performance, programmable Ethernet switching integrated with NVIDIA's compute/networking stack.
Emerging players
- AMD (Pensando): Pensando (acquired by AMD) builds programmable data-path processors (DPUs/smart accelerators) with a P4-adjacent programmability story, offering an overlapping but differentiated solution in programmable data-plane infrastructure.
- Netronome: Netronome builds programmable networking processors and SmartNICs focused on data plane programmability, overlapping with Barefoot's P4/forward-plane customization story in data center networking.
- Edgecore Networks: Edgecore is one of the principal ODMs building white-box switching platforms on Intel Tofino, serving as a primary distribution channel for Barefoot's silicon in hyperscale and enterprise deployments.
- Xilinx (now AMD): Xilinx (now part of AMD) builds programmable FPGA and adaptive SoC devices used as an alternative programmable data-plane substrate (e.g., SmartNIC and switch pipeline acceleration), competing with Tofino in programmable forwarding use cases.
Broad incumbents
- Arista Networks: Arista Networks is a leading provider of high-performance switching platforms for cloud and AI data centers, often built on Tofino or competing merchant silicon, and a major customer/vendor route-to-market for Barefoot's silicon.
- Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE/Aruba): HPE is both an investor in Barefoot (pre-acquisition) and a large enterprise switching vendor whose Aruba CX platforms increasingly leverage programmable switch silicon, making HPE a strategic customer/channel peer in the enterprise switching stack.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Barefoot Networks social profiles
Digital presenceBarefoot Networks financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Barefoot Networks leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Barefoot Networks funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds7 records
Investors15 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Barefoot Networks M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Barefoot Networks
What does Barefoot Networks do?
Barefoot Networks designs and sells P4-programmable Ethernet switch silicon (Intel Tofino and Tofino 2) based on the Protocol Independent Switch Architecture (PISA), enabling network owners to customize packet processing at line rate. The company also provides supporting software tools — P4 Studio for development, P4 Insight for debugging, and Deep Insight for per-packet network analytics — sold to switch vendors, hyperscale data centers, and communications service providers.
Is Barefoot Networks a public or private company?
Barefoot Networks is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently acquired.
When was Barefoot Networks founded?
Barefoot Networks was founded in 2013. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Barefoot Networks based?
Barefoot Networks is headquartered in Santa Clara, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Barefoot Networks's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Cisco (Silicon One), Broadcom, Marvell Technology and NVIDIA (Mellanox Spectrum). Emerging players are AMD (Pensando), Netronome, Edgecore Networks and Xilinx (now AMD). Broad incumbents are Arista Networks and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE/Aruba).
Does Barefoot Networks have an API?
No public API is recorded for Barefoot Networks.
What industry is Barefoot Networks in?
Barefoot Networks's product category is Programmable Ethernet Switch Silicon. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAHAJAH, Network/Infrastructure Processors (Switching/Routing/SmartNIC DPUs), with a secondary code of HDAFAAAF, Cloud-Scale / Hyperscale Ethernet Switching. Its SIC code is 3576.