Krishna Prabhakar

About Krishna Prabhakar

Krishna has over 25+ years of experience in the computer software, networking and security industry. He was recently an Executive Consultant at Arista Networks. Prior to this he was the CEO of AntaraAI, Inc. AntaraAI developed the next generation cloud-based network identity solutions based on the zero-trust security model. AntaraAI was acquired by Arista Networks. He was also the the COO of Fanvana, which he co-founded with his daughter. Fanvana was a sports & tech startup based in Palo Alto, CA. Prior to this, he was CEO & Founder of three Silicon Valley companies – Avenda Systems, Devsoft Corporation and MarketTools. Avenda was a leader in the network security space that developed the Clearpass platform, was acquired by Aruba Networks. Devsoft was a pioneer in the user-based network policy management space and was acquired by Cisco Systems. Krishna was also the founding CEO and the idea-man behind MarketTools that was started as a spin-off from Devsoft. The initial seed funding came from the U.S. Army Research Institute for the Behavioral and Social Sciences. MarketTools went on to raise over $83M in funding that included investments from Procter & Gamble and General Mills. It helps turn data from surveys, social media and enterprise systems into valuable business information and actionable consumer insights that help leading companies driver product innovation, brand management and customer value. It was acquired by SurveyMonkey. Krishna was a Principal Investigator for over 10+ DoD projects starting in 1996.Krishna holds an M.S. degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Texas at Austin and a B.E. degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering with distinction from NIT Trichy, India.

Experience

1. Advisor & Investor

   Thalassa Robotics

   Jun 2025 — Present · Palo Alto, CA, US

   I’m excited to be advising Thalassa Robotics Inc, a startup building the first-ever real-time subsea monitoring system. Using high-bandwidth wireless networks, Thalassa enables coordinated swarms of autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to communicate seamlessly at any depth.Driven by cutting-edge AI and signal processing, Thalassa’s technology provides continuous visibility into subsea infrastructure—something previously impossible. With massive investments from companies like Microsoft, Meta, and Google in subsea infrastructure, coupled with rising threats to these critical systems, the demand for real-time, autonomous monitoring has never been more urgent.At Thalassa Robotics, we are pioneering a new era of subsea security. By converging breakthroughs in AI, advanced robotics, and high-speed underwater wireless communications, we offer an unparalleled solution for monitoring and protecting the ocean’s most vital infrastructure. Our autonomous systems provide real-time, high-fidelity insights, enabling a proactive defense of assets like data cables and energy pipelines.

Education

• Kendriya Vidyalaya

  High School

  1978 — 1981

• The University of Texas at Austin

  MS, Computer Engineering

  1987 — 1989

• National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli

  BS, Electrical & Electronics Engineering

  1981 — 1985