Aiming to expand the market share of Chrome OS, Google has decided to fund Neverware. The New York-based startup enables enterprises to bring the original Chromebook experience to Windows devices.
Neverware has launched its Series B funding round that has been led by Google for an undisclosed amount. The new investment will be used to scale enterprise sales and marketing efforts of the company in addition to enhance the market of the CloudReady operating system, which is built on the open-source technology supporting Google's Chrome OS.
The platform is touted to make the "speed, simplicity and security" of Chromebooks available on Windows PCs. It also works with devices running Apple's macOS.
"With continuous support and endorsement from Google and other investors, we're confident in our ability to bring to market an operating system specifically designed for organisations entering the era of cloud computing," said Andrew Bauer, CEO of Neverware.
Neverware's CloudReady supports Chrome Enterprise integration through the cloud-based Google Admin console. This support helps IT teams manage the systems remotely alongside bringing a fresh experience to deteriorating hardware.
Already spread across 21 countries worldwide
Since its launch in February 2015, CloudReady has been powering more than 1,500 school districts across all 50 states in the US and throughout 21 countries around the globe. The platform is claimed to uplift the experience of machines of up to 10 years old.
The transformative nature of CloudReady is likely to take Chrome OS to new levels and would make Chromebooks a successful alternative to Windows notebooks in the future. As per a recent report by Gartner, over 9.4 million Chromebooks shipped in 2016 -- marking a stunning year-over-year growth of 38 percent -- compared to 6.8 million units in 2015.
Research analysts at IDC believe that Chromebook shipments will receive a double-digit growth in the coming years. Moreover, countries like the US, Australia and New Zealand have already emerged in the list of largest markets for Chrome OS devices.
