CyVerse

What CyVerse does

CyVerse is a federally funded, university-operated cyberinfrastructure platform that provides data storage, management, and large-scale computational resources to data-intensive scientific researchers. Originally launched in 2008 at the University of Arizona as the iPlant Collaborative to serve the U.S. plant sciences community, it was rebranded as CyVerse in 2016 to reflect an expanded mandate across all life sciences and adjacent disciplines (astronomy, geosciences, social science). The platform now serves 65,000+ researchers and consists of Data Store (iRODS-backed cloud storage), the Discovery Environment (web-based analysis workbench), VICE (interactive Jupyter/RStudio/VSCode environments), CACAO (multi-cloud orchestration across AWS, GCP, Azure, and NSF ACCESS), DNA Subway (genomics workflows), and Science APIs for programmatic integration. Federated international nodes operate in the UK (Earlham Institute, since 2016) and Austria (TU Graz, since 2020), and the platform supports compliance use cases via HIPAA/ITAR/ISO/CUI-configured data enclaves.

The underlying technology stack is open-source and container-native, built around Docker, Singularity, and Kubernetes, with iRODS managing policy-based data federation across distributed centers. CyVerse has cumulative NSF project funding of $115 million across three five-year cooperative agreements (DBI Grants 0735191, 1265383, 1743442), supplemented by a 2020 Jetstream2 allocation (CIS220026), a 2024 $20M NCEMS Synthesis Center award, and a 2024 pilot award for Translational Biotechnologies. Strategic partners include UT Austin's Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC), Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory's DNA Learning Center, Indiana University's Jetstream2, and UArizona's Data Science Institute (Data7).

The business model is hybrid: the core platform is free to use with a basic account (5 GB Data Store), monetized through tiered paid subscriptions (Regular, Pro, Commercial) for enhanced support SLAs, $200 Container Camp training workshops that include a Regular subscription, and Professional Services for secure data enclaves. However, the overwhelming majority of operating capital comes from competitive NSF grants rather than commercial revenue, making CyVerse functionally a non-profit research infrastructure project housed within The Arizona Board of Regents / University of Arizona rather than a venture-scale software company. Distribution is primarily community-led (workshops, webinars, Research Bazaar events, peer referrals) supplemented by self-service web onboarding and API-first access for developers.

Name

CyVerse

Legal name

The Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of The University of Arizona

Website

https://cyverse.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

CyVerse is a University of Arizona-operated, NSF-funded cyberinfrastructure platform providing data storage, cloud computing, and AI/ML tools to 65,000+ life sciences and data-intensive researchers globally via Data Store, Discovery Environment, CACAO, and federated nodes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Tucson

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. NSF Federal Funding: CyVerse is primarily funded through National Science Foundation grants, including DBI Grant Nos. 0735191, 1265383, and 1743442. Total project funding has reached $115 million. Additional funding through NSF ACCESS program for Jetstream2 allocations.
2. Basic Free Tier: CyVerse is free to use with a basic account, providing access to all open source tools and public data. This enables wide adoption across the research community.
3. Subscription Tiers (Regular, Pro, Commercial): Paid subscription tiers providing enhanced support levels, features, and service levels. Regular tier includes in-app chat support. Pro tier includes in-app chat with screen share, answered in 5 business days, and 60 minutes of video/audio meeting time per year. Commercial tier includes in-app chat with screen share, answered in 2 business days, and 4 hours of video/audio meeting time per year. Multi-year subscriptions available (2 year maximum).
4. Container Camp Training: Container Basics and Cloud Native Camp workshops priced at $200 each, which includes a 1-year Regular subscription to CyVerse. Modular, multi-day intensive training on container technologies.
5. Professional Services: DevOps support for self-managed, private, and secure data enclaves including HIPAA, ITAR, ISO, CUI compliance requirements. Custom implementation and support services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

CyVerse provides a comprehensive cyberinfrastructure platform for data-intensive scientific research, offering secure cloud-based data storage, a web-based Discovery Environment for running analyses, container-based interactive computing (VICE), multi-cloud orchestration (CACAO), and developer APIs. The platform serves academic and research institutions with tools for genomics, bioinformatics, biodiversity, and other scientific domains, complemented by training programs and Professional Services for compliant data enclaves.

Product overview

CyVerse provides a comprehensive cyberinfrastructure platform for data-driven scientific discovery, originally founded as The iPlant Collaborative in 2008 and rebranded to CyVerse in 2016. The platform operates as a platform-plus-modules architecture consisting of core data management and analysis products: Data Store (secure cloud storage), Discovery Environment (web-based data science workbench), VICE (interactive computing with Jupyter/RStudio), CACAO (cloud automation and orchestration), DNA Subway (genomics workflows), and Science APIs. These are complemented by ML/AI services providing GPU access for LLMs and generative AI with RAG capabilities, Cloud Native Services for DevOps frameworks, and Professional Services for secure data enclaves (HIPAA, ITAR compliance). Training offerings include Container Camps and Foundational Open Science Skills (FOSS) workshops. The platform is free to use with a basic account providing access to all open-source tools and public data, with subscription tiers available for enhanced support and features.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Discovery Environment (DE): An intuitive, web-based workbench for data science providing access to open-source research software, workflow management, and data visualization.
• Data Store
• CACAO
• Data Commons
• DNA Subway
• Visual and Interactive Computing Environment (VICE)
• Container Camps
• Foundational Open Science Skills (FOSS)

Products and services

• Data Store Secure, private cloud storage designed for research. Seamlessly manage, share, analyze, and publish data online with 5 GB of free storage space on basic accounts. Built on iRODS for distributed data management with policy-based controls.
• Discovery Environment (DE) Intuitive, web-based workbench for data science providing access to and running a vast library of open-source research software, managing data workflows, visualizing results, and exploring scientific information. Used by researchers across life sciences and other data-intensive disciplines.
• CACAO (Cloud Automation & Continuous Analysis Orchestration) On-demand platform simplifying the deployment and management of services on public or commercial cloud environments (AWS, GCP, Azure) and institutional clouds (NSF ACCESS) for elastic scalable computing resources. Successor to the discontinued Atmosphere service.
• DNA Subway Bioinformatics integration platform providing genome analysis workflows and educational tools for genomics researchers and students.
• Science APIs Application Programming Interfaces enabling developers to integrate CyVerse's core back-end services including data management, user authentication, and compute resources into custom applications and scientific workflows. Python SDK available.
• ML/AI Platform Advanced AI/ML powered applications on GPU resources enabling users to work with cutting-edge LLMs and generative AI, including private secure APIs with RAG capabilities to talk to their data.
• Data Commons Integrated framework for data storage, management, and sharing at scale supporting research data publication and collaboration across distributed storage systems.
• Professional Services DevOps support for self-managed, private, and secure data enclaves supporting compliance requirements including HIPAA, ITAR, ISO, and CUI. Custom implementation and consulting services for organizations requiring regulated infrastructure.
• Cloud Native Services Infrastructure as Code and DevOps frameworks enabling adoption of cloud native technologies with elastic scalable computing resources for scientific research workloads.
• Container Camps Modular multi-day workshops on container technologies including Container Basics (Docker) and Cloud Native Camp (Kubernetes, Terraform, CACAO) priced at $200 each, including a 1-year Regular subscription. Enables reproducible and scalable scientific analyses.
• Foundational Open Science Skills (FOSS) Week-long intensive training program introducing principal investigators to principles, technologies, and best practices for open science including cloud computing, data science tools, and data management planning.
• VICE (Visual and Interactive Computing Environment) Interactive computing environment providing web-based applications including Jupyter Notebooks, RStudio, and VSCode for real-time data analysis and collaboration. Enables researchers to perform analyses interactively and visualize results in real time.

Quantifiable outcome

• 50,000-65,000+ researchers served across disciplines
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration21 records

AI capability8 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor, core and major.

• iSamples Project (Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, UC Berkeley, University of Kansas)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 October 2020$4M NSF award for Internet of Samples cyberinfrastructure. CyVerse will integrate iSamples services enabling users to register samples and index metadata.
• Agricultural Genome to Phenome Initiative (AG2PI)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 15 September 2020Iowa State University-led $960K project leveraging CyVerse for scientific collaboration across crops and livestock research.
• Jetstream2 (Indiana University)coreTechnology or Integration · 2 July 2020National Science Foundation-funded cloud infrastructure operated by Indiana University. CyVerse integrates with Jetstream2 for additional computational capacity through NSF ACCESS program allocation CIS220026.
• CyVerse Austria (TU Graz)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Federated node bringing easier collaboration to Austrian scientists. Hosted at Graz University of Technology (TU Graz).
• Conservation InternationalminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Partner in biodiversity forecasting project applying biodiversity models with knowledge of protected areas for conservation.
• Data Science Institute (Data7)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018UArizona's data science institute co-located with CyVerse. Nirav Merchant serves as Director of Data7 and Co-PI of CyVerse.
• CyVerse UK (Earlham Institute)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2016Federated node hosted at Earlham Institute in Norwich, UK. Provides independent versions of Data Store, computational node, and API access for UK researchers.
• University of Arizona BIO5 InstitutecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2008Primary host institution for CyVerse headquarters. Located in the Bioscience Research Laboratories building alongside Data7 (Data Science Institute) and UA TRIPODS Institute.
• University of Texas at Austin, Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC)coreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2008Partner site providing expertise and access to scalable computing platforms. John Fonner leads CyVerse support from TACC Life Sciences Computing group.
• Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2008Partner site at DNA Learning Center delivering CyVerse's computational training programs and workshops. David Micklos serves as Co-PI.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Market position

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CyVerseOrg
• GitHubgithub.com/cyverse
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC-gvdjTz9rq6RovZ57LoDDA/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/CyVerse.org
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cyverse.org

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries2 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 CyVerse