Nasuni acquires DryvIQ to boost file data governance

Nasuni has acquired DryvIQ, adding data classification and governance technology to its file data platform.

The deal brings DryvIQ's tools for discovering, classifying and governing unstructured data into Nasuni's broader platform for managing file data across cloud and on-premises systems.

Nasuni said customers will be able to scan content across more than 550 file formats, identify more than 1,000 business document types, and detect sensitive information, including personally identifiable information, protected health information and payment card data, in more than 175 languages.

DryvIQ's software works across more than 40 repositories, allowing organisations to apply policy controls beyond data already stored in Nasuni. Those controls include quarantining high-risk content, applying retention and sensitivity labels, remediating permissions and supporting deletion policies linked to compliance requirements.

The transaction comes as companies prepare large stores of file-based information for use in artificial intelligence systems while tightening oversight of how that data is classified, accessed and retained. Unstructured data, including documents, presentations, images and other file types, often sits across multiple storage systems and has historically been harder to catalogue than data in structured databases.

Nasuni described the purchase as part of a broader effort to expand its file data management product set. It pointed to earlier additions including Resilio for edge performance and AI Activate for permission-based AI access.

Nick Burling, Chief Product Officer at Nasuni, said the aim was to reduce the need for customers to combine software from multiple suppliers.

"Our customers are looking to us for help with data strategies to support safe AI access in a world of rising infrastructure costs. To meet that need, this year we've added best-in-class edge performance with Resilio, permission-aware AI access with AI Activate, and now content intelligence and governance with DryvIQ," said Nick Burling, Chief Product Officer at Nasuni.

"With UniFS as the foundation, no other solution manages, moves, classifies, governs, and activates enterprise file data in a single platform. Customers have been attempting to stitch together a solution across multiple vendors for years. Now Nasuni provides one platform to manage, protect, and activate unstructured data with proven impact on both cost reduction and productivity gains," Burling said.

AI data controls

Pressure on companies to organise unstructured data has grown as AI projects move from pilots to broader deployment. In many cases, businesses want to make documents and internal files available to AI tools, but first need to know what information those files contain and whether they include regulated or sensitive material.

Nasuni cited an IBM study that found 77% of technology leaders said AI adoption was outpacing their organisation's data governance. That gap has created an opening for suppliers offering software that can classify content and automate governance rules before data is used in AI systems.

DryvIQ's technology is designed to address that issue by analysing file content in place rather than requiring wholesale movement of data before review. Nasuni said customers can use the software to continuously discover, classify and manage information at scale, while also identifying redundant or obsolete data that can be removed or archived.

The companies also positioned the combination as a way to support infrastructure decisions. Content-level analysis can help organisations decide which data should remain on-premises, which should move to cloud storage, and which should be retained or deleted, with cost control part of that calculation.

Platform expansion

Nasuni is known for software that combines cloud object storage with enterprise file services such as permissions, versioning and a global namespace. It said it serves more than 1,300 enterprise customers globally. DryvIQ said it is used by more than 1,100 organisations.

For DryvIQ, the acquisition places its governance and classification tools within a larger file data platform at a time when customers are looking for fewer point products and tighter integration between storage, access control and data oversight.

Mark Brazeau, Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at DryvIQ, said the fragmented nature of enterprise content had become a central obstacle.

"Organisations are increasingly focused on turning unstructured data into a strategic asset, but content is scattered across dozens of repositories, and most of it has never been classified," said Mark Brazeau, Founder and Chief Strategy Officer at DryvIQ.

"By joining Nasuni, we can bring our content intelligence and governance capabilities directly into a cloud-native file platform, giving customers a single, governed foundation to classify, protect, and activate data wherever it lives," Brazeau said.

DryvIQ is available for immediate use as part of Nasuni's offering.